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Copyright N°. 



CQE2RIGHT DEEOSIE 




BISHOP ISAAC LANE, LL.D. 

( AT EIGHTY-TWO YEARS OF AGE) 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY 



Bishop Isaac Lane, LL.D. 



WITH A 



SHORT HISTORY OF THE C. M. E. CHURCH 
IN AMERICA AND OF METHODISM 



Printed for the Author 

Publishing House of the M. E. Church, South 

Nashville, Tenn. 

1916 



COPYRIGHT, 1916 

BY 

ISAAC LANE 



■ &*L 



NOV 13 1916 



©CU44581 



3XW3 
.L3 /\3 



DEDICATION 

To the many hundreds of young men and young women of my 
Church and race who need encouragement and inspiration; 
to my Church in general, and the ministers in partic- 
ular, whom I have served as pastor, presiding 
elder, and bishop for a period covering 
more than sixty years; and to the 
reading public in general 

THIS LITTLE VOLUME IS MOST RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED 



PREFACE. 

In writing this little book the purpose of the au- 
thor is to narrate in a brief manner the most impor- 
tant events in his own life, give a short biographical 
sketch of the early bishops of the Colored Method- 
ist Episcopal Church in America who were his con- 
temporaries, and at the same time point out some of 
the conditions and circumstances attendant upon the 
organization of his Church. The author has set his 
hands to this task, using such manuscripts and docu- 
ments as he has in his possession and relying very 
largely upon his own memory for much material 
which he has used freely. He was a witness, if not 
a party, to every important movement in the Church 
from its very organization to the present time. 
What contribution he has made to its progress and 
development he is perfectly willing for others to es- 
timate and record, but suffice it for him to say that 
he has done what he could for his Church and for 
the race. 

In this work the author has had the encourage- 
ment of a great many ministers and laymen who 
have insisted upon his putting in permanent form 
some of the historical data that he has used so often 
in his sermons, addresses, and lectures. This he has 
felt free to do. 

While selecting the material for this book the 
author has kept constantly in mind two classes of 

5 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

persons who may read it — viz. : ( i ) The young men 
of the Church who should be acquainted with the 
struggles of their Church in its infancy, the ambi- 
tion of the founders (their sacrifices, failures, and 
successes), and who want to get a clear understand- 
ing of the special mission of their Church in the 
world, its purpose and its polity. (2) The other 
class of persons whom the author has held in mind 
is the reading public at large. I refer to that great 
body of intelligent men and women who want infor- 
mation concerning the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church in America, along with the other great ec- 
clesiastical organizations having for their purpose 
the saving of the people. The author realizes that it 
is very difficult for many well-meaning persons to 
understand why there was ever a demand made for 
the organization of the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church in America, and still more difficult for many 
to understand its relation to other Methodist 
Churches, and especially to the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South. A studious effort, it appears, has 
been made to impress the world that this Church was 
"set up and off" contrary to the wishes and desires 
of the members. Our records show that such was 
not the case. Several of our Annual Conferences 
formally and openly petitioned for an independent 
body regularly organized and properly manned, and 
it was upon these petitions and in keeping with them 
that the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, took 

action. 

6 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

If the author has accomplished nothing more than 
to show how the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church was organized, and to set forth its necessity 
and the great service it has rendered mankind during 
these forty-five years of its splendid history, he feels 
amply repaid for all the efforts he has put forth. 

7 



CONTENTS. 

Page. 

Introduction 13 

Chapter I. 

The Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in America Or- 
ganized 17 

Chapter II. 

How and by Whom the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church in America Was Organized 23 

Chapter III. 
Origin of Methodism in England and in America 27 

Chapter IV. 
The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Organized 23 

Chapter V. 

The African Methodist Episcopal and the African Method- 
ist Episcopal Zion Churches — Priority Still an Open 
Question — How Zion Was Organized; Its Growth 37 

Chapter VI. 
The African Methodist Episcopal Church 44 

Chapter VII. 
The Story of My Early Life 47 

Chapter VIII. 
My Early Life in the Ministry 52 

Chapter IX. 
The Early Days of Freedom 56 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Chapter X. Page 
Our First General Conference 60 

Chapter XL 

The Second General Conference of the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church in America 65 

Chapter XII. 
My Early Experiences as a Bishop 70 

Chapter XIII. 

The Third General Conference of the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church in America 81 

Chapter XIV. 

The Period from 1874 to 1880, Including the Fourth Gen- 
eral Conference 84 

Chapter XV. 

My Work Following the Fifth and Sixth General Confer- 
ences 89 

Chapter XVI. 

The Seventh General Conference of the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church and Some Transpiring Events 94 

Chapter XVII. 

The Great Need of a Denominational School — My Inspira- 
tion and Early Efforts — Founding of Lane College 97 

Chapter XVIII. 
A Year of Great Trial and Severe Affliction 109 

Chapter XIX. 

My Labor as a Church Expansionist — Working in the Mis- 
sion Field 1 18 

10 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Chapter XX. Page. 
Church Activities in Recent Years 124 

Chapter XXI. 

The Thirteenth General Conference of the Colored Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church in America 130 

Chapter XXII. 
Death of Mrs. Frances A. Lane 133 

Chapter XXIII. 

Biographical Sketches of the Bishops of the Colored Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church in America 143 

Chapter XXIV. 
Excerpts from a Sermon on "Faith" 183 

Chapter XXV. 

Extracts from an Address on "Holiness" Delivered before 
an Annual Conference 187 

Chapter XXVI. 

A Dissertation on "Why Baptize Children ?" 189 

II 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Page. 

Bishop Isaac Lane, LL.D., at Sixty Years of Age 19 

Trinity Church, Augusta, Ga 67 

Residence of Bishop Isaac Lane 75 

Old Main Hall, Lane College 99 

Girls' Hall, Lane College 105 

Boys' Dormitory, Lane College in 

New Main Hall, Lane College 115 

Lane Tabernacle, St. Louis, Mo 121 

Front View of New Buildings at Lane College 125 

Mrs. Frances Ann Boyce Lane 135 

Bishop W. H. Miles 145 

Bishop J. A. Beebe 149 

Bishop L. H. Holsey, D.D 153 

Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Long Smith Lane 157 

Bishop R. S. Williams, D.D 161 

Bishop Elias Cottrell, D.D 165 

Bishop C. H. Phillips, LL.D 169 

Bishop M. F. Jamison, D.D. . .' 173 

Bishop R. A. Carter, D.D 177 

Bishop N. C. Cleaves, D.D 181 

12 



INTRODUCTION. 

It is with a sense of peculiar joy that I introduce 
to the reading public Bishop Isaac Lane, D.D., 
LL.D., as an author. The joy in doing the pleasant 
task is not due to my ability to do it well, but to a 
desire I have always cherished to be in some way 
associated with the life and deeds of great men. The 
privilege I esteem very highly because of the very 
helpful acquaintance I have had with the author, the 
powerful influence of his saintly life upon me, the 
unblemished life he has lived among the people, and 
the large service he has rendered his Church and 
race in particular and humanity in general. 

The author is a bishop of the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church, having been elected in 1873 at 
Augusta, Ga., and remained in active service until 
May, 19 14, when, upon his own request, he was 
granted relief from episcopal responsibilities. 

Bishop Lane is a rare product and gives value and 
nobility to the age that produced him. Born in slav- 
ery, deprived of educational advantages, surrounded 
by untoward conditions to hinder the progress in- 
spired by the determination of his own soul, he has 
pushed his way from gross ignorance to a plane of 
intelligence inferior to none of like surroundings 
and superior to many of more favorable advantages ; 
he has pushed his way from abject slavery to the 
highest peak in the esteem and confidence of the best 
people of both races. 

13 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

As a man he has embodied and exemplified the 
virtues of a noble manhood — industrious, frugal, 
and rigidly honest; polite and courteous to every- 
body; humble but not cringing, respectful but not 
subservient ; noble in purpose, lofty in aim, and per- 
severing in worthy efforts. 

As a Christian he has given evidence of genuine 
repentance, sound conversion, and regeneration un- 
questioned. His loving heart, gentle and forgiving 
spirit, broad humanitarian sympathies, loyalty to 
truth and justice, and unswerving devotion to the 
right stand him yonder upon a pinnacle, pure and 
white, sun-crowned, with his head and heart lifted 
to God. 

As a preacher he is soundly orthodox, sublime in 
his conception of God and his eternal attributes, firm 
in his faith of the ultimate triumph of righteousness. 
He is deep and profound in thought, logical in rea- 
soning, persuasive in argument, and powerful in 
delivery. 

As a bishop he has been abundant in labors, safe 
in his leadership, and wise and honest in his manage- 
ment of the affairs of the Church. His services have 
been unselfish, untiring, and abundantly fruitful. 
He founded Lane College and has contributed much 
in energy, time, money, and sacrifice to its growth 
and perpetuity. No man in his Church has done 
more to upbuild and expand the kingdom than has 
the intrepid Bishop Lane. During the forty-one 
years of his active service as a bishop there was 

14 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

never a cloud or suspicion over his moral character, 
and his official conduct has never been called in ques- 
tion. He is still respected, honored, and revered. 

He has been a close student of men, books, and 
conditions and is fitted by study, travel, and wide 
experience to talk or write in a most interesting 
manner. For years he has been importuned by peo- 
ple of both races to write a book, and after years of 
hesitancy he has finally yielded to the wishes of his 
many admirers. 

This book will be found interesting for its simple, 
direct, and easy style. The contents are both infor- 
mational and inspirational. In a style all his own, 
the author recites interesting incidents and experi- 
ences in his own life with a humility that is charm- 
ing. If the reader finds himself wishing for more 
than is told, it will be due to disinclination of the 
author to write fully about himself. He gives also 
the origin of Methodism in England and in America 
and then narrates interesting facts concerning the be- 
ginning of the various bodies of Methodists. With 
becoming brevity he discusses essential items of the 
General Conferences of his own Church, gives a brief 
sketch of each of the bishops, and furnishes extracts 
from some of his sermons and lectures. 

With a noble and unselfish purpose, the book is 
sent forth in the name of Christ. May the blessings 
of heaven rest upon all who may read its pages ! 

J. Arthur Hamlett. 

Jackson, Tenn., August 27, 1916. 
15 



CHAPTER I. 

The Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in 
America Organized. 

Shifting scenes and events brought on by the 
War between the States forced the recently emanci- 
pated Negro to face new conditions and to live a 
new life. Slavery was abolished, but all of its at- 
tending evils did not pass with it. The South had 
been devastated, her wealth destroyed, and her re- 
sources depleted. The Southern white man had 
not only suffered the sting of defeat on the battle 
field, but his wealth had been destroyed, and he 
began to realize that he and his family must erect 
and support hereafter a lower standard of living 
than what they had enjoyed before. He could no 
longer order the slaves to do his bidding. His 
sons, who had been indulged in idleness and who had 
acquired a great averseness to labor and been taught 
by the awful system of slavery to look down upon 
work as menial and beneath the dignity of a "gen- 
tleman," were then forced to till the soil and do all 
manner of work with their hands. Naturally the 
Southern white man, smarting under the sting of 
defeat of arms, dejected in spirit because of a lower 
standard of living forced upon him and his family 
as a result of the war, was in no frame of mind to 
sympathize with the colored man, although the Ne- 
2 i 7 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

gro's condition was most trying. What the white 
man had lost under arms he now attempted to gain 
through the courts and legislation, and thus the Ne- 
gro had new fields to enter and new battles to fight. 
Homeless and penniless, he was turned out upon 
the world without shelter and food; yet the Negro 
resolved, by the help of God, to find a way or make 
one. He did not find it, but he made one. 

In the social and economic life of the Southern 
white people a break had come, and it ran all the 
way through the whole social fabric. The Method- 
ists and Baptists, the Presbyterians and Episcopa- 
lians, all had Negro contingents, and the new condi- 
tions in the South made imperative an adjustment 
in matters of Church and religious affairs to corre- 
spond with those which had taken place already in 
the civic and political life. It was of mutual advan- 
tage to both the white man and the Negro for a 
separation to take place; and, fortunately for the 
good of the cause, both were able to see it and work 
in harmony for the same end. 

When the Civil War broke out there were two 
hundred and six thousand colored people who sus- 
tained the relation of quasi members to the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, South. I say advisedly that 
the colored people were, after a manner, members 
of the Southern Methodist Church, in that religious 
services were provided for them, they were enrolled 
as members, and, with certain restrictions, they were 
permitted to have their own meetings. After eman- 




BISHOP ISAAC LANE, LL.D. 
(At sixty years of age.) 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

cipation it can be easily seen that this relation was 
not satisfactory, and at once a movement was inau- 
gurated to give the Negroes a separate and independ- 
ent organization that would be regular and orderly 
in every way. We were severely criticized and ma- 
ligned because we did not rebel and secede. Other 
independent Negro Methodist Churches had rebelled 
and seceded, and because we chose to be regular 
and orderly we were charged with being sympathiz- 
ers with slavery. In many places we were called 
Democrats and the like. 

With a view to our permanent separation, before 
our ministers had obtained their credentials from the 
Annual Conferences of the white Church, and be- 
fore we had been organized into Annual Confer- 
ences of our own, we had respectfully requested to 
be given a separate and independent Church organ- 
ization. The bishops of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, helped in every way the perfecting 
of the organization; and so, after three years of 
labor and much prayer and supplication, our Church 
was organized in Jackson, Tenn., December 15-21, 
1870, and thus began the only regular independent 
Negro Methodist Church organization in all the 
world. 

This Church has grown until to-day it has about 
two hundred thousand members, eight bishops, 
eleven general officers, with the following depart- 
ments properly officered and manned — viz.: Boards 
of Missions, Church Extension, Ministerial Relief 

21 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Society, Epworth League, Education, and Publica- 
tion of Church and Sunday School Literature. 
These departments are seeking to help in fostering 
the many interests of the Church and in developing 
the intellectual, moral, and spiritual life of her con- 
stituency. Being the youngest daughter of the 
Methodist family, "to her much has been given, and 
of her much is required." 

The Church has property whose value runs into 
millions of dollars. Lane College, Paine College, 
Mississippi Industrial College, Miles Memorial Col- 
lege, and Phillips College are the leading institutions 
of learning. 

The greatest asset of the Church is the loyalty of 
its members and the consecration of its ministers. 
These "servants of God" are willing to suffer for 
the advancement of the "Church our blessed Re- 
deemer bought with his own precious blood." 

22 



CHAPTER II. 

How and by Whom the Colored Methodist 

Episcopal Church in America Was 

Organized. 

In order to throw more light on this subject, we 
give below the address of the bishops that was sent 
out in 1873. It is worthy of a careful reading, in 
that it throws much light on how the Colored Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church was organized: 

To the Members of the Colored Methodist Episco- 
pal Church in America. 

We esteem it our duty and privilege most earnest- 
ly to recommend to you, as members of our Church, 
our form of discipline, which has been founded on 
the line of a long series of years, as also on the 
observations and remarks we have made on ancient 
and modern Churches. 

We wish to see this little publication in the house 
of every Methodist, and the more so as it contains 
the Articles of Religion maintained more or less, 
in part or in whole, by every reformed Church in 
the world. 

Far from wishing you to be ignorant of any of 
our doctrines or part of our discipline, we desire 
you to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest the 
whole. You ought, next to the Word of God, to 
procure the articles and canons of the Church to 
which you belong. 

We deem it proper in this place to give you a 
brief account of the organization of our Connec- 
tion: 

23 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

From the introduction of Methodism on this con- 
tinent we have ever constituted a part of the great 
Methodist family, first as members of the Method- 
ist Episcopal Church in America and also after the 
change took place by which we were known as the 
Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States; 
and when the division took place, in 1844, which we 
regard as a legal and constitutional division of the 
Church, we formed a part of that division called 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, which rela- 
tion we have continued to sustain until the organi- 
zation of our Church took place at the General Con- 
ference held at Jackson, Tenn., which began its ses- 
sion December 15, 1870, which day was spent in 
prayer and supplication to the Almighty, that his 
blessings might rest upon us ; and on the following 
day the regular business of the session began, Bish- 
op Robert Paine, D.D., of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, in the chair. 

The circumstances which led to our separate and 
distinct organization were as follows : 

When the General Conference of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, South, met in New Orleans in 
April, 1866, the Conference found that by revolu- 
tion and the fortunes of war a change had taken 
place in our political and social relations which made 
it necessary that a change should also be made in 
the ecclesiastical relations, and provision was made 
for our organization into separate congregations, 
districts, and Annual Conferences, if we desired it, 
and that two or more Annual Conferences should be 
formed, if it was our wish and met the approbation 
of the bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South ; we should have a General Conference organ- 
ization like that of the General Conference of the 

24 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Methodist Episcopal Church, South, as deacons and 
elders ; and, should a General Conference be organ- 
ized and suitable men be elected to the office of 
bishop, that the bishops of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, would ordain and set them apart as 
chief pastors among us. 

At the General Conference of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, South, at Memphis, Tenn., in May, 
1870, it was found that five Annual Conferences had 
been formed among us and that an almost universal 
desire had been expressed on our part that we might 
be organized into a separate and distinct Church, 
which was acquiesced in by the bishops of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, South, and recommended to 
said Conference in their address. Whereupon, by 
our request, the bishops of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, together with Rev. A. L. P. Green, 
Samuel Watson, D.D., Edmund W. Sehon, Thomas 
Whitehead, D.D., R. J. Morgan, D.D., and Thomas 
Taylor, D.D., were appointed by said Conference to 
aid in organizing our General Conference at the time 
and place above specified ; and at the succeeding ses- 
sions of our Annual Conferences delegates were 
elected to attend our General Conference, in accord- 
ance with the Discipline of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South. 

It was further determined by the acts of the Gen- 
eral Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South, in 1866 that, should the time arrive when we 
should be formed into a separate and distinct organ- 
ization, all property which was intended for the use 
and benefit of people of color held by trustees of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church should be transferred 
to trustees appointed by us, to be held forever for 
our use and benefit. 

25 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

It will be seen from the facts in the case that our 
record is clear and that we have descended regular- 
ly from the very fathers of Methodism and that our 
organization is both legal and constitutional. 

We remain your very affectionate brethren and 
pastors, who labor night and day, both in public and 
private, for your good. William H. Miles, 

Joseph A. Beebe, 
Lucius H. Holsey, 
Isaac Lane. 
26 



CHAPTER III. 

Origin of Methodism in England and in 
America. 

The early history of Methodism makes interest- 
ing reading matter. It began in the year 1729 in 
the University of Oxford, England. It was here 
that John Wesley, George Whitefield, Charles Wes- 
ley, and a few others, while students, banded them- 
selves together for their own intellectual and spirit- 
ual improvement. They were so systematic about 
all things that the less serious-minded students of 
the University in derision gave them the name of 
Methodists. 

The name was so appropriate that we find no 
record of its ever being resented by the Wesleys or 
any of their followers ; and now, after the name has 
been glorified by more than a century of splendid 
achievements, there is no stigma or reflection in it 
as seen or felt by any one. 

The organizations were known first as Societies 
and continued by that name for more than fifty 
years. The first Methodist Society was organized 
in London, England, in 1739 by Mr. Wesley. Like 
all other great movements, it had a small beginning. 
There were about ten persons who formed it, but 
soon a great revival spread over all Britain, so that 
shortly thereafter there were hundreds who joined 
the little band of earnest believers. It is a subject 
that has been commented upon frequently that in the 

27 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

midst of spiritual darkness God raised up three 
servants the equals of whom the world had not seen 
since the days of the apostles — viz. : John Wesley, 
the bishop, a man of great spiritual power, unusual 
executive ability, a ripe scholar and parliamentarian ; 
George Whitefield, the preacher; and Charles Wes- 
ley, the poet. To these men more than to any others 
Methodism is indebted for its existence. 

Methodism began with experimental religion in 
the heart, and by spontaneous energies it project- 
ed itself in every direction by leaps and bounds. 
Through its class meetings, love feasts, and prayer 
meetings it propagated itself until its power was felt 
far and near. Mr. Wesley's own experience as he 
told it set the work on fire, and soon the fire which 
"strangely" warmed his heart was felt in the hearts 
of men the country over. But Methodism that was 
sweeping over England was not to be confined to 
that country. It soon spread to America, where it 
found plenty of material on which to glow and burn. 

Methodism in America. 

The first Methodist Society in America was or- 
ganized by Philip Embury, a local preacher, in the 
city of New York in 1 766. Barbara Heck, a Chris- 
tian woman; was the prime mover in the work ; and 
so a woman was in the lead in the formation of this 
Church, and it is a fact worthy of noting that wom- 
an has been used largely by Methodism ever since in 
forwarding its good work. The first Methodist 

28 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

church was built in John Street, New York, in 1768. 
Thus began an organization that has spread from 
one end of our country to the other, and the world 
is better by reason of its influence and good work. 

The First Annual Conference. 

Robert Strawbridge, Richard Boardman, Joseph 
Pilmore, Francis Asbury, and Richard Wright were 
all prominent workers in establishing the early 
Methodist Churches in this country. Francis As- 
bury soon became the most influential man in Amer- 
ican Methodism because of his zeal and power as a 
gospel preacher. The first Annual Conference was 
held in Philadelphia in 1773. There were then but 
ten traveling preachers, six circuits, and eleven hun- 
dred and sixty members. Thomas Rankin, an hon- 
ored minister of much influence and power, presided 
over the deliberations of the Conference. The busi- 
ness was very simple, and the session was brief. 
The most important work done was the agreement 
on the part of the preachers to abide by the doctrines 
and discipline of John Wesley. These Conferences 
were held each year at different places until Decem- 
ber 25, when the last one was held in Baltimore in 
Lovely Lane Chapel. This session brought to a 
close the era of Wesleyan Methodism in America 
and at the same time prepared the way for the Meth- 
odist Rpiscopal Church. At this time there were 
eighty-three traveling preachers and fourteen thou- 
sand nine hundred and eighty-six members. 

29 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

In 1784 the Methodist Episcopal Church was for- 
mally organized. Thomas Coke, an assistant of Mr. 
Wesley in England, was sent over for the purpose 
of consummating the organization. Thomas Coke, 
LL.D., and Francis Asbury were elected the first 
bishops by the Conference (called the Christmas 
Conference), which met December 25, 1784, and 
continued in session until January 2, 1785. This or- 
ganization now gave greater prestige to the Church 
as a Church. They had been called Societies, and 
now they were to be known as Churches. They had 
been considered members of the Established Church 
of England; now they were to be considered as a 
separate and independent organization. Mr. Wes- 
ley himself continued during his lifetime a regular 
presbyter in the Church of England and gave Dr. 
Coke authority to exercise the office of a bishop in 
America, calling him a superintendent, which is only 
another name for bishop. Mr. Wesley also directed 
Dr. Coke to ordain Francis Asbury to the same of- 
fice; and thus began the episcopacy which has been 
kept up through all of these years in the various 
branches of American Methodism. 

The First Methodist General Conference. 

The first Methodist General Conference convened 
in Baltimore, Md., November 1, 1792. The Con- 
ference directed that the next General Conference 
should meet after an interval of four years. Al- 

30 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

though recognizing its full ecclesiastical authority, 
the members bound themselves not to make any 
changes in the doctrine and polity of Methodism as 
enunciated by Mr. Wesley or in any of the recog- 
nized rules observed by the Methodists in the past, 
unless the new measure received a two-thirds ma- 
jority vote. The presiding elder's term of office in 
any district was limited to four years, which rules 
have been followed in practice ever since. 

After the organization of the first General Con- 
ference of the Methodist Church, the others were 
held regularly, and the ordinary routine of work 
was done from time to time as the welfare of the 
organization demanded. The question of slave- 
holding disturbed the peace and quietude of the 
Church as well as that of the State. The more 
prominent this question became in the halls of leg- 
islation, the more serious it became in the Church. 
So finally, in 1840, the question of slaveholding 
became an issue claiming much prominence in the 
General Conference. This storm that threatened 
the unity of the Methodist Church was brooding 
over the organization, without much hope of its be- 
ing arrested or turned back. So at the very next 
General Conference, held in New York City May 
1 to June 10, a Plan of Separation with the South 
was adopted. A fuller report of the separation is 
given in another chapter of this book. 

In 1856 Bishop Burns, of Liberia, was ordained 
the first colored bishop in the Methodist Episcopal 

3i 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Church. He was a missionary bishop and as such 
exercised the duties of his office only in Africa. 

This great Church has grown until to-day her 
membership is three million six hundred and fifty 
thousand five hundred, with eighteen thousand nine 
hundred and fifty ministers and thirty thousand 
churches. Of these, there are more than three hun- 
dred thousand Negro members, who are represented 
in every sphere of service in the gift of the Church, 
save that of bishop as a general superintendent. 
Besides secretaries of the various departments and. 
editors of official organs, Negroes preside over and 
teach in some of the best schools supported by this 
Church for Negro people. In these positions of 
honor and trust they have reflected credit upon the 
Church and the race to which they belong. 

The proposed organic union of the Methodist 
Churches, and especially the Methodist Episcopal 
Church and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 
at this particular time (1916) is receiving consider- 
able attention. How this union, when consummat- 
ed, will affect the status of the Negro membership 
is a question that is as interesting as it is speculative. 
It will be recalled that colored Conferences were 
established in this Church in 1852, and by i860 prac- 
tically all of the colored Churches belonged to the 
distinctive Negro Annual Conferences, and this sys- 
tem remains to this day; so the contact is not so 
frequent or so close as to be objectionable even to 
the most prejudiced of their fellow Churchmen. 

3 2 



CHAPTER IV. 

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 
Organized. 

There were perhaps several causes leading up to 
the separation of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South, from the Methodist Episcopal Church, but 
slavery was the one that furnished the background 
for the most of them. It was the one that could not 
be held in check or averted. The following resolu- 
tion, offered by Griffith and Davis, two delegates to 
the General Conference of 1844, is self-explana- 
tory and indicates the nature of the trouble that was 
brooding and the one on account of which the great 
Church was to be divided. (See General Confer- 
ence Journal, May 23, 1844.) 

Whereas the Rev. James O. Andrew, one of the 
bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church, has be- 
come connected with slavery, as communicated in 
his statement in his reply to the inquiry of the Com- 
mittee on Episcopacy, which reply is embodied in 
their Report No. 3, offered yesterday ; and whereas 
it has been, from the origin of said Church, the 
settled policy and the invariable usage to elect no 
person to the office of bishop who was embarrassed 
with this "great evil," as under such circumstances 
it would be impossible for a bishop to exercise the 
function and perform the duties assigned to a gen- 
eral superintendent with acceptance in that large 
portion of his charge in which slavery does not ex- 
ist ; and whereas Bishop Andrew, himself nominated 
by our brethren of the slaveholding population, was, 
nevertheless, free from all personal connection with 
3 33 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

slavery; and whereas this is, of all periods in our 
history as a Church, the one least favorable to such 
an innovation upon the practice and usage of Meth- 
odism as to confide a part of the itinerant general 
superintendency to a slaveholder ; therefore 

Resolved, That the Rev. James O. Andrew be 
and is hereby affectionately requested to resign his 
office as one of the bishops of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church. 

There were other documents of a more concilia- 
tory nature introduced, but they served only as oil 
poured upon the flames already kindled. The dele- 
gates from the Southern States were already deter- 
mined as to their course, and those from the North- 
ern and Eastern States were equally determined in 
their course. All were able to see that a separation 
was inevitable. A Plan of Separation was adopted, 
and soon the movement for a separate and independ- 
ent organization was set on foot. This plan left the 
initiative and the final decision with the delegates 
from the Southern States, and they were not very 
slow in acting. A general convention was called to 
meet the next year in Louisville, Ky. 

The Louisville Convention. 

The Church in the South and Southwest, in her 
Quarterly and Annual Conferences, approved the 
course of their delegates in the General Conference 
and declared her conviction that a separate organi- 
zation was necessary to her existence and prosper- 
ity. Delegates representing fifteen Annual Confer- 

34 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

ences assembled in Louisville, Ky., in accordance 
with the call, May i, 1845. Bishops Joshua Soule 
James O. Andrew presided, and Rev. T. N. Ralston 
and Rev. T. O. Summers were elected Secretaries. 
The following resolutions were adopted, with only 
three dissenting voices : 

Be it resolved by the delegates of the several An- 
nual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church 
in the slaveholding States in general convention as- 
sembled, That it is right, expedient, and necessary 
to erect the Annual Conferences represented in this 
convention into a distinct ecclesiastical connection 
separate from the jurisdiction of the General Con- 
ference of the Methodist Episcopal Church as at 
present constituted; and accordingly we, the dele- 
gates of the Annual Conferences, by the General 
Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
entirely dissolved ; and that a separate ecclesiastical 
connection under the provisional Plan of Separa- 
tion aforesaid and based upon the Discipline of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, comprehending the 
doctrines and entire moral, ecclesiastical, and eco- 
nomic rules and regulations of said Discipline, ex- 
cept in so far as verbal alterations may be necessary 
to a distinct organization, and to be known by the 
style and title of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South. 

Resolved, That we cannot abandon or compro- 
mise the principle of action upon which we proceed 
to a separate organization in the South; neverthe- 
less, cherishing a sincere desire to maintain Chris- 
tian union and fraternal intercourse with the Church 
(North), we shall always be ready, kindly and re- 
spectfully, to entertain duly and carefully consider 

35 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

any proposition or plan having for its object the 
union of the two great bodies in the North and 
South, whether such proposed union be jurisdic- 
tional or connectional. 

Bishops Soule and Andrew were requested to 
unite with the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 
"upon the basis of the Plan of Separation." Bishop 
Soule at once gave the convention to understand 
that he felt bound to carry out the plan of episcopal 
visitation as outlined by the bishops in New York, 
while Bishop Andrew connected himself with, and 
was recognized as a bishop of, the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church, South. On May i, 1846, the first Gen- 
eral Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South, was convened in Petersburg, Va., Bishops 
Soule and Andrew presiding. General officers were 
elected, and the newly formed Church was provided 
with all the officers necessary for the proper care of 
every phase and department of the Church work. 

Thus began a Church that has grown in member- 
ship and wealth until to-day it is recognized as one 
of the world-wide powers for the establishing of 
righteousness in the hearts of men. This Church 
has upward of two million members, three large 
and flourishing Publishing Houses, a complete sys- 
tem of colleges and universities, sixteen bishops, 
fourteen general officers, and Church property val- 
ued at millions of dollars. In the Methodist family 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, takes sec- 
ond rank with the Methodist Episcopal Church. 

36 



CHAPTER V. 

The African Methodist Episcopal and the 
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church- 
es — Priority Still an Open Question — How 
Zion Was Organized; Its Growth. 

Which of these organizations, the African Meth- 
odist Episcopal or the African Methodist Episco- 
pal Zion Church, is the older is yet an open ques- 
tion. The irregular manner in which they were or- 
ganized makes it very difficult to determine with 
any degree of satisfaction when they as organiza- 
tions were born. The Zionists insist on the year 
1796 as the beginning of their Church. If we take 
this date as their starting point as a denomination, 
we shall have to recognize this Church as the oldest 
of the separate and independent Church organiza- 
tions among the Negro people of this country. Be 
that as it may, there is no doubt that "Mother Zion 
Church, " in New York, was organized and estab- 
lished in 1796; but the Zion Church as anything 
like a connection was not organized until 1828. The 
members who afterwards became members of the 
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church remained 
with the mother Church, the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, until about this time. This can be easily 
inferred from the following address, drafted Febru- 
ary 22, 1820, by a committee consisting of John 
Dungy, James Varick, Charles Anderson, and Wil- 
liam Miller and sent by them to the members and 

37 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

bishops of the Philadelphia and New York Annual 
Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
This address is taken from the history as given by 
Bishop J. J. Moore, of the African Methodist Epis- 
copal Zion Church: 

To the Bishops and Preachers of the Philadelphia 
and New York Annual Conferences of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, Assembled, 

Respected Brethren: We, the official members of 
the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church and 
Asbury Church of New York, of the Wesley 
Church of Philadelphia, of Zion Church of New 
Haven, Conn., and of Zion Church of Long Is- 
land, in consolidation forming a Methodist body, 
beg leave to present to your honorable body an ad- 
dress on a subject to us of great importance and, 
we trust, not a matter of indifference to you. In 
the first place, permit us to humbly and sincerely 
tender our thanks for what you have done for us in 
the kind service you have rendered us when in our 
infant state. We trust that the great Head of the 
Church in his goodness may continue to reward you 
for your labors among us, you who have been the 
instruments in bringing us from darkness to light, 
from the power of sin and Satan to God. Permit 
us further to say that when the Methodist Society 
in America was small the Africans enjoyed com- 
fortable privileges among their white brethren, but 
as the white element increased the Africans were 
pressed back. Therefore it was thought necessary 
for them to have separate places of worship, giving 
the African a better opportunity of full religious 
enjoyment and privileges. It is well known that our 

38 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

number has greatly increased within the last few 
years. Many are still coming into the fold of Christ. 
Among us preachers have been raised up whose la- 
bors God has blessed. But hitherto they have been 
too limited in their ministerial privileges. They 
have not had the opportunity of traveling as we 
think God designs that they should have, at least 
to reach our own race in the evangelical work of the 
Christian Church. There is no provision in the 
mother Church, the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
for us in the itinerant work, that colored preachers 
may go forth and dispense the Word of Life 
among our own race. And now it seems that the 
time has come when something should be done for 
the improvement of the colored brethren in the min- 
istry. But how shall this be accomplished? We 
have not the least expectation that the African 
preachers will be admitted to a seat and vote with 
their white brethren in ecclesiastical assemblages. 
[This is not what they ought to have expected 
among Christian brethren, who could not fail to 
understand the divine lesson on its being a sin to 
have respect of person ; and if simply on account of 
clothing, much more a sin on account of race or 
color. James ii. 9, 10.] 

We do not desire to unite with the R. Allen party, 
being dissatisfied with their general manner of 
procedure. The brethren in the city of New York, 
after due consideration, have concluded to form an 
itinerant plan and establish an Annual Conference 
for the African Methodist Episcopal Zion preachers, 
under the patronage of the white bishops of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. We believe that such 
an arrangement effected would tend greatly to pro- 
mote the spiritual interest of our people generally; 

39 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

our preachers would receive more encouragement in 
their ministerial labors. If we should commence 
this important work of forming said itinerant plan 
and establishing an African Annual Conference un- 
der the supervision of the bishops of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, the two Societies, the Zion and 
Asbury Churches in New York City, with the Phil- 
adelphia Society, with their connectional title, shall 
be the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church in 
America. We have also selected a portion of the 
Discipline of the mother Church (the Methodist 
Episcopal Church) for our government, with the 
necessary modifications to meet the circumstances 
of our organization. To this we beg leave to refer 
you for perusal. After you have considered our 
case, should our proceedings meet your approval, 
and should you decide to comply with our wishes, 
we will stand ready to receive such advice or in- 
structions as you may think proper to give us 
through our reverend father in the Lord, Bishop 
McKendree or any other whom the Conference may 
see fit to select. On the subject of ordination to 
eldership, of which our preachers have all been 
deprived, we might have obtained it from other 
sources; but we preferred to follow the advice of 
Bishop McKendree, given to us in New York, to 
w T ait until the meeting of your Annual Conference 
in this and the New York District; then we could 
fully understand what the mother Church could do 
for us in the matter. In consequence of some un- 
easiness in the minds of some of our brethren or 
members in New York City, we have been under 
the necessity of electing three of our deacons to 
the office of elders and some of the preachers to the 
office of deacons. We hereby show our people that 

40 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

their preachers can be properly authorized to admin- 
ister the ordinances of God's Church. We believe 
it has had the desired effect of settling the minds 
of our brethren and advancing the work of the 
Lord. We expect our first yearly Conference to be 
held in the city of New York on the 24th day of 
June next, at which time we hope to have the happi- 
ness of hearing that our reverend father, Bishop 
William McKendree, presided and took juris- 
diction of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion 
Church. With this hope we rest, awaiting your 
answer, meanwhile praying that the great Shepherd 
and Bishop of souls may guide you in your deliber- 
ations, in ours, and in all other cases ; that your con- 
clusions may be pleasing in his sight and tend to 
advance the kingdom of Christ among the African 
race. 

N. B. — Should the above address be sanctioned 
by your honorable body, and should you be pleased 
to act upon it immediately, you will forward it on 
to the New York Annual Conference for their con- 
sideration and action. Should the time appointed 
by us for the sitting of the Annual Conference be 
inconvenient to the person who might be appointed 
to organize the same, we are willing to change the 
time a few days sooner or later, provided you will 
please give us timely notice for such change. But 
should you see fit not to favor the address in any 
respect, you will have the goodness to return it to 
the bearer. 

Signed in behalf of the official members of both 
Societies, at a special meeting called for that pur- 
pose, March 23, 1821, in the city of New York. 
James Varick, Chairman; 
George Collins, Secretary. 
41 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

The foregoing address being prepared, Rev. Abra- 
ham Thompson and Leven Smith were appointed a 
committee to present it to the official brethren of the 
Society at Philadelphia (the Wesley). They pre- 
sented the same, and it was approved by them. 
Brothers Thompson and Smith then conveyed it to 
the Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, convened at Milford, Del. The Conference 
received it and acted upon it. In 1822 James Var- 
ick, Abraham Thompson, Christopher Rush, and 
James Smith were appointed a committee to wait 
upon Bishop McKendree, who refused to ordain the 
preachers or recognize them. These men were or- 
dained shortly thereafter by James Covell, Sylvester 
Hutchinson, and W. M. Stillwell. During this same 
year an extra session of the Conference was called, 
and James Varick was elected superintendent of the* 
whole connection. 

Zion's First General Conference. 

In 1828 the first General Conference of the Af- 
rican Methodist Episcopal Zion Church was held in 
Zion Church, New York City. There were twelve 
preachers present, with James Varick presiding. 
The Rev. Christopher Rush was elected superin- 
tendent, or bishop, for "the first time."* At first the 
bishops of this Church were elected annually ; after- 
wards they were elected for a term of four years. 

*Moore's "History of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion 
Church," page 100. 

42 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

This continued until 1880, when the bishops were 
elected for life or during good behavior. Since 
then this great Church has had a remarkable growth. 
It now has twelve bishops, two hundred and eighty- 
nine thousand members, two thousand two hundred 
and four organizations, with Church property val- 
ued at more than five million dollars. This Church 
has a full set of general officers, a publication de- 
partment, and much valuable school property. Liv- 
ingstone College, at Salisbury, N. C, is its leading 
institution of learning. 

43 



CHAPTER VI. 

The African Methodist Episcopal Church. 

The African Methodist Episcopal Church (Beth- 
el) is the largest Negro Methodist Church in the 
world. Its history runs back as far as 1784, al- 
though as a Church organization we must take as 
the time of its birth the convening of the "Friend 
of Manhood Christianity" in Philadelphia, April 9, 
1816. The following persons were members of the 
convention : 

The first General Conference of this infant of 
God was held in the city of Philadelphia in 18 16. 
There we find in this body the following princes in 
heart: Rev. Richard Allen, Jacob Tapisco, Clayton 
Durham, James Champion, and Thomas Webster, 
of Philadelphia, Pa. ; Daniel Coker, Richard Wil- 
liams, Henry Harden, Stephen Hill, Edward Wil- 
liamson, and Nicholson Gailliard, of Baltimore, 
Md. ; Peter Spencer, of Wilmington, Del. ; Jacob 
Marsh, Edward Jackson, and William Andrew, of 
Attleborough, Pa. ; and Peter Cuff, of Salem, N. J. 

Bishop B. W. Arnett, of the African Methodist 
Episcopal Church, gives the following account of 
the work of the first General Conference of this 
Church : 

Richard Allen was elected to preside over the 
body; Rev. Daniel Coker was elected Vice Chair- 
man; Richard Allen, Jr., was elected Secretary. 

The convention resolved "that we will favor an 
44 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

independent Church organization." The committee 
appointed for this purpose reported the first Disci- 
pline of the Church. It was the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church doctrine and government, except the 
presiding eldership. 

The convention elected, under the new form of 
government, two bishops, Richard Allen and Daniel 
Coker. Richard Allen was not present when the 
election took place ; but the next morning when the 
journal was read he arose and informed the conven- 
tion that he was sensible of the honor conferred on 
him, as well as the duties that would be expected of 
him, but, with a sense of his duty to his Church and 
the fitness of things, he was of the opinion that two 
bishops were too many for the organization to start 
with. One bishop was enough at this time, he said. 
He stated that he would resign his office and let the 
convention say which should hold over. 

This speech created some hard feelings on the 
part of the Baltimore delegation, who were in favor 
of Daniel Coker. The Philadelphians were in favor 
of Richard Allen. So the whole matter relating to 
the election of bishops was reconsidered, and a new 
election was held, when Richard Allen was elected ; 
and on the nth day of April, 1816, he was ordained 
by the imposition of hands of five ordained elders in 
the Church of God. The convention, after it had 
made arrangements for the meeting of the Annual 
Conference at Baltimore, adjourned, after complet- 
ing one of the most important events of the age, 
when we consider the effects it has had upon the 
development of Negro manhood. 

In defense of the work of this convention, we 
quote further from the works of Bishop B. W. 
Arnett, of that Church: 

45 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

If Mr. Wesley had a right to ordain Dr. Coke, 
by the same rule Absalom Jones might ordain Rich- 
ard Allen, and the ordination must be equally valid. 
And if "three elders and one deacon" or "three eld- 
ers" can "ordain a bishop" to answer the purpose, 
by the same party the ordination of the Rev. Rich- 
ard Allen must be equal, in point of virtue, as any 
now among Methodists. Therefore why not emit 
and transmit as much sanctity among those on whom 
he may lay his hands as any other Methodist bishop, 
according to the doctrine of episcopacy, provided 
he be as holy in heart, walking with God, whereby 
he may do it in the power of faith under the sancti- 
fying influence of the grace of God. 

No one has ever doubted the real strength of 
Richard Allen's character or his devotion to racial 
ideals. From 1816 Bishop Richard Allen continued 
as the only bishop of the Church until 1828, when 
Rev. Morris Brown was elected as the second bish- 
op of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. As 
the Church grew in strength of organization it grew 
in members, until to-day the Church has a splendid 
organization, with fifteen bishops, over seven thou- 
sand organizations, and more than five hundred 
thousand members. It has Church property valued 
at more than ten million dollars. Wilberforce and 
Morris Brown Universities are its leading institu- 
tions of learning. 

46 



CHAPTER VII. 
The Story of My Early Life. 

I have delayed for some time the writing of this 
little book, in which I hope to set forth the principal 
events of my life, in a studious effort to put it in as 
brief a form as possible. Covering a period of 
more than sixty years of public service, the difficulty 
of selecting the material can be easily seen. 

I was born March 3, 1834, in the Western division 
of the State of Tennessee, in Madison County, five 
miles north of the city of Jackson, where I grew up 
to manhood. I was reared almost motherless and 
fatherless, having no parental care and guidance 
given me. I had an early conception of God, and 
somehow I was inspired to be religious. I sought 
religion when quite young; but I did not embrace 
faith until I was twenty-one years of age, that being 
the nth day of September, 1854. It was then that 
I was happily converted and set out to serve God. 
Three or four months after my conversion I was 
called to preach. I joined the Methodist Church in 
Jackson, Tenn., October 21, 1854, where I retained 
my membership until the Civil War was over. It 
was then that I joined Salem Church, out about five 
miles from Jackson. I was licensed to exhort in 
November, 1856. This was the beginning of my 
public ministerial life. Being born in obscurity, out 
in the country, five miles from town, on a large 

47 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

farm, I thought that no good could come from one 
raised with these environments and under these un- 
favorable conditions. To begin with, one can see 
clearly that my way was dark ; but with the gift that 
God gave me, I began to work and continued un- 
til I was brought into notice by the people among 
whom I lived. 

My early life was spent on the farm ; and, like the 
majority of the members of my race of that day, I 
was denied all the advantages of early training such 
as would prepare me for public service. I shared 
in all the evils common to slaves during those dark 
and bitter days. Pen will never be able to record, 
tongue will never describe the trials, the sufferings, 
and the heartaches of those days. Truly, slavery 
furnishes the blackest chapter in the history of the 
American republic and is the greatest and foulest 
crime of the nation. 

I learned to read and write under the greatest 
difficulties. I was not only deprived of a teacher, 
but I was not allowed the use of a book or a pencil. 
I had to learn the best I could. I soon found out 
what a great advantage it was to read and write, 
and I applied myself diligently to them as opportu- 
nities could be made. After the Civil War I estab- 
lished regular hours for the studying and the read- 
ing of God's Word, and these I have kept all of 
these years. I coveted the morning hours the most, 
although in the evening, when the hours for work 
were over, I would read and meditate until my can- 

48 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

dlelight or pine torch would fail me or my body 
would succumb to fatigue and I would fall asleep. 
The Bible, Binney's "Theological Compend," 
Clarke's "Commentaries," Watson's "Bible Diction- 
ary," and Ralston's "Elements of Divinity" were 
among the first books that I studied. These books 
I read with a fascination from which I have not 
escaped to this day. 

My First Marriage and Early Experiences. 

When I was nineteen years and ten months old 
I was married to Miss Frances Ann Boyce, a young 
woman of eighteen years, who had attracted consid- 
erable attention because of her industry, modesty, 
neatness in dress, and ladylike bearing. She was 
not a converted Christian, and I was exceedingly 
anxious for her to have the joy and love that had 
come into my life when I was brought from dark- 
ness into the marvelous light of Jesus Christ. I at 
once began to pray that my mother and wife could 
enjoy the gift of grace unto salvation. There were 
three large families on the plantation on which I 
lived, and we held prayer meetings every Saturday 
night. Many persons professed faith in Christ in 
our meetings, and one of these was my wife. It 
was remarkable to me how she was converted. We 
were singing an old plantation melody, and these 
were the words: "God has done delivered Daniel; 
why not deliver me?" 

At night I would hold family prayer with my 
4 49 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

wife and mother; and in those prayers the good 
Lord blessed my labors, and they were brought into 
the Church. They joined New Salem Church with 
me. 

To us were born eleven children, who lived to 
reach manhood and womanhood. Many were the 
trials I had to pass through to rear them ; but I es- 
tablished the custom of praying three times a day on 
bended knees alone and in secret, and God did not 
fail to hear me. This custom I still observe. When 
I had no closet in which to enter, I made one of my 
hands, for I wanted to be a good man. I desired 
not only to live right before the people of the com- 
munity, but before my wife and children as well as 
before my God. The natural gifts that God gave 
me when called upon to lead prayer service soon 
brought me to the front ; and as practice makes per- 
fect, the more I was called upon to pray, sing, and 
exhort, the greater was the number who professed 
faith in Christ. This caused my fame to spread 
throughout the community, and a great many sin- 
ners and wicked men were brought to Christ. Soon 
my reputation as a preacher having power with 
God and influence with man went abroad among 
both white and colored people. This was the period 
between the years 1856 and 1861. When the Civil 
War broke out, the white people were very hard on 
the Negroes. They did not want them to meet in 
any kind of gatherings, save that for preaching and 
praying. Ofttimes this was offensive and called for 

50 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

the greatest vigilance on the part of the slave own- 
ers. The only time blood was drawn from my body 
after I was a man was on the occasion of our hold- 
ing prayer meeting. As all well know, the Negroes 
were praying to the Almighty to be set free, and the 
white people were praying to the Lord that they be 
held in bondage. So for three years there was 
much supplication. The whole country was in hos- 
tility. The North was arrayed against the South, 
and the South was pitted against the North, and the 
Lord only knows how the Negroes were made to 
suffer during those trying days. Those were times 
that tried the very hearts of men. It has been a 
wonder to me how I made it through so well with 
my home affairs. I had a large family to support, 
but a painstaking, devoted, and true wife. To me 
she was a true helpmeet. Her honor and word were 
above gold and silver. She enjoyed the fullest con- 
fidence and profoundest respect of all who knew her. 
For purity of life, personal honor, and integrity no 
woman ever surpassed her. 

5i 



CHAPTER VIII. 
My Early Life in the Ministry. 

Shortly after my conversion I was overcome 
with a feeling that I ought to preach. I strove for 
months to get rid of it, but without success. I 
went to a man in whose piety and Christian virtue 
I had much confidence and made known to him my 
struggle and the feeling that was then strong upon 
me. He gave me his sympathy and directed me to 
a certain preacher for counsel and aid ; but this man 
did not believe in Negroes preaching, and he gave 
me no encouragement. I next sought the advice of 
a colored man whom the Methodists had helped. 
He was a pure Christian man, and he told me that 
if God had really called me to preach he surely knew 
his own business better than man and advised me not 
to trouble myself, but trust God. I did trust him; 
and soon thereafter the inspiration came, and I firm- 
ly decided to enter upon the work of a minister. 

I sent in my petition to a Quarterly Conference 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, for 
license to preach. The Conference did not grant 
my request, but gave me license to exhort instead. 
The committee explained that the Church did not 
believe it proper to grant license to Negroes to 
preach. Rev. George Harris was the presiding eld- 
er, and Rev. A. R. Wilson was the preacher in 
charge of the local Church. Rev. Wilson was my 

52 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

personal friend up to the time of his death, and he 
took a lively interest in my career and my work. In 
the early days of my ministry I regarded him as a 
great and good man, and during all the years of 
our acquaintance thereafter the esteem in which I 
held him when I was a young man did not suffer in 
any way. 

During the Civil War the attitude of the South- 
ern Methodist Church toward granting license to 
Negroes to preach had undergone some changes, 
and so I appeared again for license to preach. 
This time I was sent before the Quarterly Confer- 
ence presided over by Elder William H. Lee. After 
asking many questions bearing upon almost every 
phase of the doctrines of Christ and the Church, I 
was granted license to preach. I recall many of the 
questions that were asked and the answers that I 
gave. I shall never forget the occasion and the keen 
interest every one seemed to feel in the examination 
I was called upon to take. I give below a few of 
the questions and the answers that provoked consid- 
erable interest and discussion — viz. : 

Question. Are all men sinners? 

Answer. Yes. 

Q. What Scriptural proof or reference have you 
to offer? 

A. "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall 
all be made alive." 

Q. Is conviction a voluntary act or an involuntary 
one? 

A. Involuntary. 

53 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Q. Can you give a Scriptural reference? 

A. "The grace that brings salvation has appeared 
unto all men, teaching them godliness." 

Q. What is the difference between justification 
and repentance? 

A. Justification is the work done for me, while 
regeneration is the work done in me. The former 
takes place in the courts of heaven, while the latter 
takes place in the human heart. 

These questions, together with others somewhat 
similar, being satisfactorily answered, I was granted 
license to preach, and I felt a freedom that I had 
not enjoyed before. 

I have already spoken of the prayer meetings and 
the splendid opportunity they afforded in exercising 
the gifts that God had given me and the deepening 
of the work of grace in our hearts. These meetings 
proved to be a great preparation for the work that 
I was called upon to do after I had entered fully 
into the work of the Christian ministry. Being 
licensed to preach, I was frequently called upon to 
preach and exhort, especially on Sunday afternoons, 
not only to my people, but the white people also 
would come out in large numbers to hear me. At 
first I was very much embarrassed to preach before 
such large crowds, because I realized fully that I 
was without education and had but little opportunity 
of learning anything. But God helped me wonder- 
fully and blessed my work. 

From the time I was licensed to exhort up to 
1865 I held meetings for our people. We had glo- 

54 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

rious times, and many converts would rise and "tell 
of Jesus and his love." These meetings made our 
country famous for Methodism during the war. At 
some places we had stormy times. The old days of 
the beginning of the Wesleyan Movement in Eng- 
land, in Ireland, and in Wales had their reflex in 
these. Many times my life was in great danger, 
and the white people were constantly being reviled 
and reprimanded because they had encouraged me 
in preaching. The persecutors went so far as to 
burn down the church houses in which I had 
preached to my people. But I had gone too far in 
the work to be stopped by such methods. Too many 
people, both white and colored, believed in me to be 
sidetracked by any such methods; for at this time 
not only Methodists, but Christian people of all 
denominations, upheld me and sought to give en- 
couragement. One good old Presbyterian brother 
said to me after I had preached in his church: 
"Brother Lane, keep on preaching the gospel, and 
we will keep on building church houses until the 
trumpet blows. Let them burn down. We will 
build, and you shall preach." 

55 



CHAPTER IX. 
The Early Days of Freedom. 

The Emancipation Proclamation that had been 
prepared by President Abraham Lincoln in the 
month of July, of the year 1862, was not issued un- 
til January 1 of the year 1863. It did not go into 
effect at this time, as we all know, but its influence 
was felt at once the country over. A studious effort 
was made on the part of a good many people to keep 
the issuance of this proclamation a profound secret 
to the Negroes. But it could not be done. There 
was too much excitement for such a clever piece of 
work to be done with any degree of success, and 
there were too many Negroes who were able to read 
and understand the trend of affairs to be misled by 
any subterfuge that might be resorted to by the sym- 
pathizers of the Lost Cause. The Confederacy was 
doomed, and this proclamation was the death knell 
to slavery on the American continent. The moral 
effect was wonderful. Strong men who had put all 
their faith in the supremacy of the Confederate 
army now began to weaken and became despaired 
of success. The slaves saw it, and it required great 
effort on their part to suppress their feelings of 
rejoicing. 

After Lee had surrendered and the Confederacy 
had gone to pieces and Jefferson Davis had become a 
refugee, our owners called us together and told us 

56 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

we were free and had to take care of ourselves. 
There I was with a large, dependent family to sup- 
port. I had no money, no education, no mother nor 
father to whom to look for help in any form. Our 
former owners prophesied that half of us would 
starve, but not so. It must be admitted, however, 
that we had a hard time, and it seemed at times 
that the prophecy would come true; but the harder 
the time, the harder we worked and the more we 
endured. For six months we lived on nothing but 
bread, milk, and water. We had a time to keep 
alive ; but by praying all the time, with faith in God, 
and believing that he would provide for his own, we 
saved enough to get the next year not only bread, 
milk, and water, but meat also. 

The next year my family fared much better, and 
I was able to devote more time to the work of the 
ministry. I took an active part in the Church and 
soon gained the confidence and respect of both white 
and colored people. At our own request, our Church 
was organized as an independent society, and we 
took the name of the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church in America. In 1866 we had a Conference 
of our own in Jackson, Tenn., known as the Ten- 
nessee, North Alabama, and North Mississippi An- 
nual Conference. I was elected and ordained dea- 
con one day, and on the next day I was elected and 
ordained elder. At the close of this Conference I 
was appointed the presiding elder of the Jackson 
District of the above-named Annual Conference, 

57 - 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

which position I held for four years. Meanwhile 
we found that the territory and membership em- 
braced by this Annual Conference were entirely 
too large ; and so later on out of this Conference we 
organized the Tennessee, North Alabama, North 
Mississippi, and West Tennessee Annual Confer- 
ences. 

As I won the confidence and respect of the peo- 
ple I grew into prominence in the Church. At the 
session of the Tennessee Annual Conference that 
convened in Brownsville, Tenn., I was elected the 
leader of the Tennessee delegation to the first Gen- 
eral Conference of the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church in America. Bishop David S. Doggett, 
D.D., of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 
presided over the deliberations of this Conference 
and gave service that was highly satisfactory to all 
the brethren. It is difficult for any one who was 
not present to understand and appreciate the attitude 
of the Southern Methodist Church, as exemplified 
through its bishops and other leaders, toward the 
colored work. It is far more difficult to explain it. 
There was a fraternal sympathy, a mutual good 
will, a kindly interest that made the relation cor- 
dial and highly helpful. 

The Jackson District was a prominent appoint- 
ment. As the elder I was given an assessment in the 
way of a salary of four hundred dollars per year. 
As a matter of fact, I was paid all the way from 
one hundred and fifty to two hundred dollars a year 

58 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

during the four years I served in this capacity. 
Having served the time limit, I was afterwards as- 
signed to the work as pastor of Liberty Colored 
Methodist Episcopal Church at Jackson, Tenn., and 
served that congregation for a little more than a 
year for the handsome salary of one hundred and 
seventy-five dollars! My family was large and 
growing, and I had to do much work on the farm 
in order to support my family properly. Neverthe- 
less, during my pastorate I was successful in in- 
creasing the membership of this Church from seven- 
ty to three hundred members. These were great 
days for me in the ministry. I preached with much 
freedom and great power. My conversion and con- 
duct showed to the people that I was sincere in my 
purpose and earnest in my efforts, and men seemed 
to realize that I was called of God. All of these 
things gave me the confidence and respect of the 
people, and I gradually grew into prominence and 
general favor. 

59 



CHAPTER X. 

Our First General Conference. 

As early as the fall of 1877 several of the An- 
nual Conferences of the future Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church were organized, and by the spring 
of 1870 the number had been greatly increased. 
The General Conference had been called to assemble 
in the fall of 1870, and there was much interest dis- 
played in the affairs of the new organization. I 
shall always remember the session of the Tennessee 
Annual Conference that convened at Brownsville, 
Tenn., and was presided over by Bishop David S. 
Doggett, D.D., of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South. The day before the convening of the Con- 
ference my wife's mother received a stroke of pa- 
ralysis and fell dead. I received the message and 
had to return home to be with my loved ones during 
those sad hours. I rode all the way from Browns- 
ville to Jackson on horseback. After giving all the 
comfort and consolation possible, I returned to the 
Conference room with a heavy heart. I was in- 
formed that the brethren, during my absence, had 
selected me as one of the delegates to the forthcom- 
ing session of the General Conference. I felt very 
keenly the confidence thus expressed and the honor 
conferred and sought by my conduct to prove wor- 
thy of it. I had labored earnestly, and this recogni- 
tion was a source of comfort to me. 

60 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

In reading of the work of those early days let us 
remember that conditions were unlike the conditions 
of to-day in many respects. The people were great- 
ly scattered and were constantly moving from one 
place to another. This was necessarily true because 
of the unsettled condition of everything in the coun- 
try. It was no easy task to keep up with the people 
and safeguard the interests of the Church. 

On December 15, 1870, the first General Confer- 
ence of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in 
America assembled in Jackson, Tenn. This was an 
interesting gathering of men. Among the more 
prominent persons who made up this Conference, as 
I recall, were Revs. Worden P. Churchill, Joseph 
Crouch, Benjamin Bullard, R. T. White, John W. 
Lane, Esquire Bobo, Isaac H. Anderson, R. H. 
Vanderhorst, and Lucius H. Holsey. W. H. Miles 
was a reserve delegate from the Kentucky Annual 
Conference. Among the active laymen there were 
Henry Hammond, James Graves, Augustus Bostick, 
and Wesley Ware. These men were the leaders in 
doing the early legislation of the Church. Decem- 
ber 15, the first day of the Conference, was spent 
in prayer. I shall never forget the scenes of that 
day. A great work was to be done, and all seemed 
to realize the necessity of divine help and guidance. 
It was a precedent worthy of the men and the oc- 
casion and one that the succeeding General Confer- 
ences might do well to emulate. The white breth- 
ren commissioned by the Church to help us in every 

61 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

way necessary were there praying with us, that no 
mistake be made in the important work before us. 
During that service a great spiritual wave swept 
over us as we lingered at the throne of grace. 
Bishop George F. Pierce, D.D., presided over this 
Conference; while the Rev. James A. Heard, of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, South, was the Secre- 
tary pro tern. Bishop Pierce then requested Dr. A. 
L. P. Green, of Nashville, Tenn., to read the action 
of the General Conferences bearing upon our re- 
quest to them for a separate organization and their 
action with respect to the same. These documents 
made clear the fact that the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, was anxious to help in every way 
possible to establish our Church and give us the 
advantage of their experience and knowledge. Aft- 
er listening to the reading of these documents, the 
brethren set their hands to the work before them. 

The organization was made permanent by the 
election of Rev. J. A. Heard, Secretary, and the Rev. 
L. J. Scurlock, Assistant Secretary. A majority of 
the delegates elected being present, the Conference 
proceeded to business. Besides the various com- 
mittees that were appointed, the following work 
was done in a manner highly creditable to the 
Church and the delegates: The Rules of Order as 
set forth in the "Manual of Discipline" of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, South, were adopted for 
the government of the Conference. The Conference 
chose as the name of their Church the Colored Meth- 

62 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

odist Episcopal Church in America. It adopted, in 
the main, the Book of Discipline of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, South, with such changes as ne- 
cessity required, as the Book of Discipline of the 
new Church. It elected the Rev. William Henry 
Miles, a reserve delegate from the Kentucky Annual 
Conference, and the Rev. Richard H. Vanderhorst, 
of Charleston, S. C, as the first bishops of the Col- 
ored Methodist Episcopal Church in America. It 
created and established a Publication House, locat- 
ing the same in Memphis, Tenn., with the Rev. L. J. 
Scurlock as Agent. It established the Christian In- 
dex as its official organ and elected the Rev. Samuel 
Watson as its first editor. It established and fixed 
the boundaries of the nine Annual Conferences al- 
ready organized, prorated the amount of funds to 
be raised by the Annual Conferences, and adjourned 
to meet four years from that date or at the call of 
the Senior Bishop, W. H. Miles. Without prece- 
dent or experience, the leaders entered upon their 
duties with a deep sense of their responsibilities and 
obligations. The polity of the Church had to be 
established, its relation to all other bodies had to be 
defined, and the protection of its interests had to be 
secured. It can be easily seen that these things were 
enough to fill the hands of the leaders to overflow- 
ing ; and we venture the assertion that, had they not 
been men of action and of great vision, they would 
have failed in their first attempts. Be it said to the 
credit of the General Conference that both of the 

63 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

bishops elected were men of strong personal char- 
acter and much executive ability. Rev. William H. 
Miles was a great preacher and a strong executive, 
while the Rev. R. H. Vanderhorst had won a wide 
reputation as a great evangelist and a matchless or- 
ator. These men with much ceremony were or- 
dained bishops of the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church in America by Bishops Robert Paine and 
Holland N. McTyeire, of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, and were consecrated to this holy 
office December 19, 1870. Both being endowed with 
great physical parts, they gave promise of many 
years of usefulness to their Church. But not so. 
The duties were too onerous, the work was entirely 
too heavy, and the physical and mental strain was 
too great for them to live long. In July, 1872, 
Bishop R. H. Vanderhorst died, after serving the 
Church only eighteen months as a chief pastor. His 
passing was a subject of much grief and disappoint- 
ment to the entire Church. Befitting memorial serv- 
ices were held throughout the connection to his hon- 
or and memory. The death of Bishop Vanderhorst 
multiplied the duties devolving upon the shoulders 
of Bishop Miles and forced the convening of the 
General Conference one year earlier than had been 
planned. 

64 



CHAPTER XL 

The Second General Conference of the Col- 
ored Methodist Episcopal Church 
in America. 

On Wednesday, March 19, 1873, a called session 
of the General Conference of the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church in America convened in Trinity 
Church, Augusta, Ga. It will be noted that the Con- 
ference met in March instead of in August. This 
was done so as to provide for the holding of the 
spring Annual Conferences and the summer district 
meetings that meant so much to the new organiza- 
tion. During these days of organization all of these 
meetings needed episcopal supervision and direction. 

Since the adjournment of the last General Con- 
ference Bishop Vanderhorst had passed away, and 
the work had grown to such magnitude and impor- 
tance that the demand for more bishops was imper- 
ative. Besides the care of the work itself, there was 
an estrangement between the other Methodist bodies 
and the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in 
America that seriously threatened an open breach. 
This came about by the other Churches occupying 
property that legally and of right belonged to the 
Colored Methodist Episcopal Church. It can be 
easily seen that these problems and others that were 
constantly arising would involve us in ecclesiastical 
entanglement unless they were handled firmly and 
wisely, and Bishop Miles desired the counsel and 

5 65 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

advice of associates. It stands to the credit of the 
leaders of our Church that, in a measure, these de- 
nominational differences were adjusted in a Chris- 
tian spirit, and the open breach was averted. It is 
true that we lost some valuable Church property, 
especially in the great cities of the South and East. 
Some of the other Churches sent men from the 
North, especially persons who had some experience 
in public life, as politicians and the like, into the 
South to corral the people in large cities and thus 
persuade them to leave the Colored Methodist Epis- 
copal Church and align themselves with the other 
Churches. Because we did not have men to cope 
with the situation, our organization lost heavily. 

At this General Conference a goodly number of 
the white brethren were on hand. They had come 
to offer words of encouragement and advice and to 
give assurances of their continued interest and good 
will. They knew of many of our trials and hard- 
ships and were in great sympathy with us. Among 
these godly men I recall Bishop George F. Pierce, 
D.D., Rev. Thomas Taylor, Dr. Sehon, Rev. J. E. 
Evans, and Dr. Whitehead. Bishop Miles presided 
over the deliberations of this Conference, and the 
Rev. J. W. Bell, of Kentucky, was elected Secretary. 

After the devotional exercises had been held and 
the organization perfected, Bishop W. H. Miles read 
the first episcopal address ever delivered to a Col- 
ored Methodist Episcopal General Conference. It 
was a masterly production and clearly showed that 

66 



TRINITY CHURCH, AUGUSTA, GA. 
Where Bishop Lane was consecrated to the office of bishop, March 23, 1S73. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

the author had a full grasp of the situation and a 
clear comprehension of the problems before the 
Church, as well as the true mission of our Method- 
ism in the world. The Conference was so thorough- 
ly in accord with the work of Bishop Miles that it 
adopted all of his recommendations and elected three 
bishops to help him superintend the work of our 
rapidly growing organization. This election took 
place after much prayer on the morning of March 
19, 1873. On the first ballot the Rev. Joseph A. 
Beebe, of North Carolina, and the Rev. L. H. Hol- 
sey, of Georgia, each having received a majority of 
the votes of the Conference, were declared bishops 
elect of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in 
America by Bishop William Henry Miles. On the 
third ballot Isaac Lane, of Tennessee, was elected 
bishop, which election was duly announced by the 
presiding officer. The next Sunday, March 23, 
Bishop George F. Pierce, D.D., of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, South, preached the ordination 
sermon and assisted otherwise in the ordination of 
the bishops elect. This work was done in historic 
old Trinity Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, of 
Augusta, Ga., where, since then, many notable gath- 
erings of colored Methodists have been held. The 
whole machinery of the Church was now put into 
operation. The financial plan was improved upon, 
the publication department took definite form, the 
educational and missionary work was begun, and 
the Church work gained in prestige and power. 

69 



CHAPTER XII. 
My Early Experiences as a Bishop. 

Having been elected bishop on the 19th day of 
March and consecrated to that holy office on Sun- 
day, the 23d of March, A.D. 1873, to go out as a 
bishop and preach the gospel and administer the 
laws of the Church was no little embarrassment to 
me. In those early days of the freedom of the race 
the people were crude and had their own ideas of 
religion, of the ministry, and especially of the bish- 
ops. There was much curiosity attached to the com- 
ing of a bishop. This situation had to be met and in 
a way satisfied in order to reach the people in the 
interest of the Church. 

After our election and consecration, Bishop Miles 
called us together, and then and there we allotted and 
assigned the work for the year. I was called upon 
to preside over the Northwest Texas, the East Tex- 
as, and the Louisiana Annual Conferences. At that 
time our entire connection was composed of mission 
Conferences when compared with the work as it is 
organized to-day, and my work was from every 
viewpoint missionary. The territory was exceeding- 
ly large, covering the present States of Texas, Okla- 
homa> and Louisiana. As all know, this territory 
was wholly undeveloped and sparsely settled by a 
wild and adventurous people, who cared very little 
for the Church, religion, and the ministry. Rail- 

70 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LAKE 

roads were very few, and most of the traveling had 
to be done by stage, on horseback, by boat, or on 
foot. To travel over this vast territory entailed 
many hardships, deprivations, and much suffering. 
Pen cannot describe, tongue can never tell, nor can 
language express the mental anguish and the physi- 
cal pain I endured on those perilous trips, I shall 
never forget those early experiences. 

Being without money with which to purchase the 
necessary clothing, buy books, and the like, I was 
much embarrassed. At that time the railroad fare 
was five cents per mile, and my Conferences were 
far apart. After providing for the protection and 
care of my family, I started out to hold the District 
Conferences. Bishop Miles had asked me to hold 
some of these Conferences for him, and I did so. 
My first Conference was held at Cumberland City, 
Tenn. After calling the Conference to order, we 
conducted our devotional service. I made a talk 
based upon some portion of Scripture and then 
called for the election of a secretary. In those days 
it was a very difficult matter to secure the services 
of one who could write and record with any degree 
of intelligence the proceedings of our meetings. 
Therefore much care was exercised in the selecting 
of a competent secretary. This having been done, 
the Conference settled down to work. I spoke to 
the brethren on the duties of the presiding elder 
and the pastors. A great congregation was there to 
hear and see the newly elected bishop, and we had a 

7i 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

splendid meeting. I returned home only to spend a 
few days with my family, and then I was off to 
Minden, La., the seat of the next District Confer- 
ence that I was to hold. En route to Minden I 
stopped at Water Valley, Miss., where I enjoyed the 
hospitalities of friends for a few days, and then I 
continued my trip. In order to reach the Confer- 
ence I had to travel seventy miles on horseback. 
After getting there I was so tired and worn that I 
could scarcely go. The brethren were there in large 
numbers, and there was much uneasiness among 
them as to the proper care of the work of the Con- 
ference. I knew the attitude of the brethren, and I 
went on bravely in His name. Before we had gone 
far into the work of the Conference the brethren 
began to see for themselves that the interest and 
well-being of the Church were safe in my hands, 
and they soon accorded me all the courtesies, respect, 
and recognition due the presiding officer of their 
Conference. We could not secure a competent sec- 
retary, and I had to record the proceedings of the 
Conference and preside also. This made the work 
irksome and slow. After closing what was consid- 
ered as one of the best Conferences ever held in 
Minden, I returned home and made preparations for 
the holding of my first Annual Conference. 

My First Annual Conference. 

My first Annual Conference was the West Texas 
Annual Conference, which convened at Waxahachie, 

72 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Ellis County, Tex., in 1873. En route to the seat 
of the Conference my experiences were everything 
but pleasant. I had only a small sum of money, 
and while on a train a man robbed me of that. I 
had to go through St. Louis and Sedalia, Mo., and 
then via the St. Louis and Texas Central Railroad. 
I reached the State line of Texas and Oklahoma 
(then the Indian Territory). It was about sun- 
down, and I had some sixty miles yet to go before 
reaching Dallas, my destination. Here I found 
Rev. A. J. Burrows hard at work. From Dallas I 
went to Waxahachie, a small town about sixty miles 
south of Dallas. 

The Conference was well attended; but the year 
had been a hard one for the brethren, and their re- 
ports were very poor. The preachers had not re- 
ceived very much in the way of support, and the 
general interest of the Church had suffered likewise. 
To indicate the nature of the support that was given, 
I give one item that will be quite interesting to the 
students of the conditions that prevailed during 
those days. For the support of the bishop the Con- 
ference had been asked to raise forty dollars, and 
they reported having raised three and one-half dol- 
lars. It was at this place that one of those unpleas- 
ant events took place — viz., the African Methodist 
Episcopal Church had gotten a hold among our 
people and greatly divided them. As a result the 
African Methodist Episcopal Church did not do 
very much and made impossible the success we 

73 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

would have had under favorable conditions. I lec- 
tured and preached and exhorted and helped them in 
every way I could and then left for my next ap- 
pointment. 

My Second Annual Conference. 

My next Annual Conference took me to Hender- 
son, Rusk County, Tex., a distance of over two 
hundred miles. Of this, forty miles had to be trav- 
eled on horseback. It was a long and painful trip. 
Upon the advice of friends, I stopped with Brother 
McElroy, a very aged man who was greatly afflicted 
with the palsy. He could not do anything for my 
comfort; but his wife, a young woman, did what 
she could to make my stay pleasant. I found the 
brethren much disappointed and disgruntled. For 
years Bishop Miles had been using a white man as 
the secretary of the Conference. The brethren had 
learned that this white man could not be present, as 
he had been called to attend court in a neighboring 
town, and they were at a loss to know how the Con- 
ference could be held without a competent secretary. 
The delegates and ministers hesitated in coming into 
the Conference room. We opened after the usual 
manner and then sent for the brethren to come in, 
as we were ready to begin the work of the Confer- 
ence. We sang, read the Scriptures, exhorted, and 
preached the best we could, and gradually the breth- 
ren saw that we could have a good meeting if the 
secretary was not there to make a record of our 

74 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

transactions. With my personal assistance, we used 
a layman and got along very well with the minutes 
and the work of keeping the journal. This was a 
large Conference ; and although asked to raise three 
hundred and eighty dollars for the support of the 
bishop, they reported only fifty-seven dollars. 
When we called the attention of the brethren to the 
importance and necessity of raising the small amount 
asked for the support of the bishops of the Church, 
the brethren seemed to have been surprised to know 
that they would be expected to bring money for the 
bishops instead of the bishops sending money to 
them. 

My Third Annual Conference. 

The Louisiana Annual Conference, which con- 
vened in Homer, La., was the third Annual Confer- 
ence I was called upon to hold. En route to Minden 
I stopped over in Marshall, Tex., where I preached 
to an audience of white and colored people. They 
heard me gladly and gave me twenty dollars to help 
in carrying forward the work in which I was en- 
gaged. This made seventy-seven dollars that I had 
received in the way of salary during the year. At 
Homer we held the Conference under many diffi- 
culties. Our work was not organized, the people 
had not been trained, and there was apparent every- 
where a want of unification of purpose and a con- 
cert of action on the part of the workers. As a 
result during the year the brethren had not accom- 

77 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

plished what they might have done under more fa- 
vorable conditions. Of the three hundred and eighty 
dollars that the Conference was assessed, they had 
raised only eighty dollars. I explained the system 
of finance we were inaugurating, and the brethren 
promised to do better another year. Let it be said 
to their credit that they lived up to their new reso- 
lutions. 

With the adjournment of this Conference my 
first year as a bishop came to a close. I had worked 
hard during the year and had but little financial help. 
On my salary the Church had paid me only one hun- 
dred and sixty dollars and fifteen cents during the 
year, and my expenses necessarily carried me far 
into debt. My family was large and dependent, and 
my responsibilities were many. In order to make 
my episcopal tour I had borrowed two hundred dol- 
lars. My note was about to fall due, and something 
must be done to enable me to meet it. My wife and 
children had a crop of cotton. This I sold, and with 
the money I paid the debt and took up the note. I 
then worked hard to replace this money. I cut 
wood and hauled it to town and sold it, making 
enough money thereby to buy such things as cloth- 
ing and other provisions that were needed by my 
family. This was a hard year for me and one that 
I shall never forget. The labor, deprivations, and 
hardships I endured were enough to bring tears to 
my eyes. The young ministers of our Church, even 
those serving missions to-day, do not know our 

78 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

suffering during those early pioneer days of our 
Church. 

In the early spring of 1874 I was called to Texas 
on business for the Church, and after attending to 
the work I attempted to return home. The high 
waters prevented my returning ; and a white brother, 
learning of my condition, gave me enough money to 
pay my fare to Louisville, Ky., where Bishop Miles 
had called us to our annual meeting. The General 
Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South, was in session in Louisville at this time, and 
it was very necessary for us to meet in that city. I 
reached Louisville at night and took a carriage for 
the home of Bishop W. H. Miles. He was out of 
the city, but his wife provided for me the best she 
could. The next morning Bishop Miles and the 
other bishops of our Church reached the city. We 
had a short session and then adjourned in order to 
visit the General Conference of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, South. The Conference gladly heard 
our message and renewed their assurances of inter- 
est, sympathy, and good will. The next day we had 
our annual meeting. The bishops made their re- 
ports, which showed steady progress and improve- 
ment. We laid off the work for the next year the 
best we could and discussed many of the perplexing 
questions and problems that were still before the 
Church. 

Our General Conference was soon to meet, and 
there were the usual things to be done prior to the 

79 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

meeting of this body. The message had to be writ- 
ten, the recommendations had to be agreed upon, 
and general direction given to the advancement of 
every interest of the Church. I had entertained the 
hopes of getting some money at this meeting, but all 
my hopes soon vanished when it became evident that 
there was not a cent available for such purposes. 
During the year I had received far less than my 
expenses incurred in traveling over the connection. 
The bishops agreed to my preaching en route home, 
and by taking up collections I thus became able to 
pay my fare home. This I did, arriving home after 
an absence of six or eight weeks. Finding my wife 
sick and despondent, I gave such comfort and help 
as I could ; and I began at once to make preparation 
for the care of my family during my absence in at- 
tendance upon the General Conference and the An- 
nual Conferences that were soon to be upon me. 
This I did to the best of my ability. I cut and 
hauled to town wood for sale and did such other job 
work as I could get to do and at the same time 
helped in every way I could with my crop. 

80 



CHAPTER XIII. 

The Third General Conference of the Col- 
ored Methodist Episcopal Church 
in America. 

The General Conference that convened in Louis- 
ville, Ky., in August, 1874, was the third General 
Conference of the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church in America. At this time the country was 
passing through a great financial crisis. On account 
of the long drought, crops had failed, money was 
scarce, and there was much suffering among the 
people. In spite of these untoward conditions, the 
General Conference was well attended. The breth- 
ren soon got down to business. Although there was 
to be no election of bishops, the interest in the gen- 
eral work of the Church was not wanting. The re- 
port of the bishops showed much improvement in 
our organization. There were reported fifteen An- 
nual Conferences, with a membership of six hundred 
and seven traveling preachers and seventy-five thou- 
sand communicants. Like the rest of us, the Senior \ 
Bishop, William H. Miles, was impressed with the 
importance and necessity of a better-prepared min- 
istry as the one outstanding, crying need of the hour. 
This one idea grew upon this great and good man 
until finally he threw himself into the movement of 
founding a great central school, with a number of 
smaller and more elementarv schools that were to 
6 81 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

serve as feeders. It became the one burning and all- 
absorbing question upon his mind and heart. He 
had laid his plans before the General Conference of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, just a few 
weeks before and had been given some encourage- 
ment from the bishops, general officers, and dele- 
gates. One member of the Memphis Conference 
gave one hundred dollars, while others gave smaller 
amounts. The other bishops of the Church joined 
the Senior Bishop in this work, the General Confer- 
ence indorsed the movement, and upward of six- 
teen thousand dollars was raised for this purpose. 
Later on Bishop Miles traveled far and near, urg- 
ing the importance of this work and making appeals 
in its behalf. I remember many of his terse, trench- 
ant sayings. Being a man of unusual ability, he 
swayed his audiences by his convincing logic and 
his matchless eloquence in his appeals. It is said 
that no man could sit under the sound of his voice 
without being thoroughly moved. The General 
Conference took steps to carry out the plans of its 
great leader. It adopted the Central University as 
the name of the proposed school and decided upon 
Louisville, Ky., as the site. It appointed Bishop 
W. H. Miles as its Agent and urged the ministers 
throughout the connection to take a collection for 
the college, sending the same at once to the Agent. 
It called upon our people and friends of the race 
everywhere to assist in this great and laudable en- 
terprise. 

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AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

While the establishing of a system of schools was 
the one outstanding question, there were other mat- 
ters that received the attention of the Conference. 
The salary of the Senior Bishop was placed at one 
thousand dollars per year and his traveling expenses, 
while the salaries of the other bishops were placed at 
seven hundred and fifty dollars per year and their 
traveling expenses. These amounts were prorated 
among the various Annual Conferences and were 
regarded in a way as assessments. While this mon- 
ey was never raised, the action of the General Con- 
ference made clear a plan that some day was to be 
operative in the Church. 

The Rev. E. B. Martin was the efficient Secretary 
of this Conference and as such rendered signal serv- 
ice to the Church. He afterwards became editor of 
the Christian Index and pastor of Center Street Col- 
ored Methodist Episcopal Church, at Louisville, Ky. 
Martin's short and brilliant career in the Church 
came to a sudden close because of family troubles 
that he could not control and of conduct involving 
his moral character. 

83 



CHAPTER XIV. 

The Period from 1874 to 1880, Including the 
Fourth General Conference. 

I regard the period from 1874 to 1880 as one of 
great transition. Everything was still in motion. 
There was nothing that had become fixed and defi- 
nite in form or mode. Every Church movement was 
being tried and every plan inaugurated tested. It 
is not surprising that many of these plans failed. 
It is rather astonishing that so many of them suc- 
ceeded. We were feeling very keenly the encroach- 
ments that the other Churches were making upon us. 
They constantly referred to us as a Southern 
Church, a rebel Church, and the like, and those 
names were very distasteful to our people. 

As early as 1866 the African Methodist Episcopal 
Church, through their bishops, urged our uniting with 
them, claiming that there was no room in this coun- 
try for another independent organization. A me- 
morial in the form of a petition was sent to the 
bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 
during their General Conference that convened in 
New Orleans, La. At once we made it known that 
we preferred a separate organization of our own, 
regularly established and organized after our own 
ideas and notions. The bishops and General Con- 
ference of the Southern Church readily agreed with 
us, and the petition was most respectfully returned 

84 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

with regrets that the present conditions would not 
justify the granting of the petition as it had been 
presented. 

During this extraordinary period there were many 
overtures made for organic union between oui 
Church, the African Methodist Episcopal Zion 
Church, and the colored members of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church; but no plan or basis of union 
was ever worked out and submitted on which we 
could agree, and this division has continued all these 
years. 

Our Publication House up to this time had not 
proved a paying proposition. There was constantly 
a deficit in the publishing of the Christian Index, 
and now something had to be done to save it to the 
Church. It had been moved from Memphis to Lou- 
isville, and from Louisville to Memphis again, and 
the deficit continued. What was to be done was still 
the question. 

Our educational movement had proved to be more 
of a failure than our publishing department. Fifty 
thousand dollars was needed to establish the con- 
nectional school, and it was necessary to have ten 
thousand dollars at once to save to the connection 
the property already purchased by Bishop Miles. 
This money could not be raised ; and Bishop Miles, 
disappointed and greatly disheartened, decided to 
abandon the educational work and leave the field 
for others to cultivate. This was in 1878. 

The period from 1874 to 1880 was not only a 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

period of great trial to the Church, when her plans 
and policy were being tested ; but it was also a period 
of much hard work, many disappointments, and 
hardships for her bishops. Demands for their 
services were constantly made, and the money nec- 
essary to cover their expense in traveling over the 
railroad from one point to another was not avail- 
able. As we have already recorded, our salaries 
were small, and rarely did any of the bishops receive 
more than six hundred dollars per year in the way 
of salary. In 1875 I received two hundred and sev- 
enty dollars, and the next year I was paid the hand- 
some salary of three hundred and eighty dollars! 
The territory over which I traveled entailed much 
traveling; and had I not been energetic and ambi- 
tious for my family, we should have suffering dur- 
ing those days. 

In the fall of 1877 I held the Georgia Confer- 
ence. Among the other discussions provoking much 
thought were the requirements of a person who de- 
sires to become a member of the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church in America. The next year 
(1878) the General Conference met in Jackson, 
Tenn., and I requested the bishops to pass upon a 
form that might be used throughout the connection 
by ministers in receiving members into the Church. 
This form as drafted by me was adopted by the 
bishops and the General Conference; and, without 
any change, it has been used ever since. It is as 
follows and can be found in our Book of Discipline 

85 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

on page 257: "To this question, asked by the minis- 
ter, the candidate must answer in the affirmative: 
'Do you solemnly, in the presence of God and this 
congregation, ratify and confirm the promise and 
vow of repentance, faith, and obedience contained 
in the baptismal covenant ?' " 

This General Conference did much constructive 
work in the way of legislation and is regarded as one 
of the best we have ever held. 

It was at this General Conference that it became 
very apparent to all that unless something was done 
our beautiful Israel Metropolitan Church, in Wash- 
ington, D. C, would be lost to the connection be- 
cause of financial conditions that had developed. 
The local Church was unable to take care of the 
large debt that was hanging over the Church prop- 
erty, and we were notified that unless something was 
done at once the Church property would be lost to 
the connection. In order to give the necessary re- 
lief, the Conference levied an assessment of ten cents 
per member upon the whole Church, and I w r as elect- 
ed as the Special Agent and Treasurer of this fund. 
We raised enough money to "tide" the property 
over, but the original debt was not reduced to any 
appreciable extent. That debt has continued to ex- 
ist all these years and has been a decided draw- 
back to the building up of our Church work at the 
seat of our national government, where we should 
have not only a representative church edifice, but 
a large, representative congregation of worshipers. 

87 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

The General Conference of 1882 enacted much 
important legislation. The Church work began to 
take on the departmental form, and the machinery 
had to be adjusted to meet the demands of the times. 
The Church manifested considerable interest in the 
founding and establishing of her educational insti- 
tutions, and new leaders were being developed for 
the advancement of the interests of the kingdom of 
Christ. The failure on the part of the Church in 
establishing the schools at Louisville, Ky., and Sar- 
dis, Miss., had dampened the educational ardor of 
the leaders, but in no way discouraged the people 
or lessened the desire of both leaders and people for 
schools of their own. So as early as 1878 there was 
a movement inaugurated in the Tennessee Confer- 
ence for the establishing of a school of high grade 
at Jackson. Rev. D. L. Jackson, of Alabama, Revs. 
C. H. Lee, J. H. Ridley, Sandy Rivers, Berry 
Smith, J. K. Daniel, and others were leaders in this 
movement. In 1879 Bishop Lane came to the as- 
sistance of the Church, and the movement began to 
take on a tangible form which eventually led to the 
founding of Lane College. A similar movement 
began in Georgia under the leadership of Bishop 
L. H. Holsey and resulted in the founding, in 1883, 
of Paine College. 

88 



CHAPTER XV. 

My Work Following the Fifth and Sixth Gen- 
eral Conferences. 

The fifth General Conference of the Colored 
Methodist Episcopal Church in America convened 
in Augusta, Ga., May 4, 1882, and transacted some 
very important business. Among the most striking 
pieces of constructive legislation done by the General 
Conference was the one requiring all ministers, both 
local and traveling, to subscribe for the Christian 
Index, the official organ of the Church. This law 
has relieved the Church of the continued embarrass- 
ment in the publishing of the connectional organ. 
Its wisdom is recognized in that this law has never 
been repealed and is in vogue to-day. The Publica- 
tion House was moved from Louisville, Ky., to Jack- 
son, Tenn., where it has remained ever since 1882. 

During the General Conference of 1886, in laying 
off the plan of episcopal visitation, I was assigned 
to the Western field of labor again. My first An- 
nual Conference met at Mountain Fork, Ind. Ter., 
August 19, 1886. On my way to this Conference I 
stopped at Clarksville, Red River County, Tex., and 
then went on to Shawneetown. I had been ad- 
vised to spend the night in the home of Brother 
Mitchell Shaw, one of our preachers. I went there 
and was received by him and his wife. Mrs. Shaw 
was an Indian and did not know anvthing of the 

89 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

manners and customs of the States' people. Crude 
and coarse, there was a complete want of all social 
intercourse and pleasantries, and for that reason I 
did not care to stay. Brother Shaw was living after 
the most primitive manner, and I decided that it 
would be pleasanter for me to be traveling along 
during the night than to stay there in the hut of 
Brother Shaw under the existing conditions. With 
my pony, I set out on this long and perilous trip. 
It was during this night that I had the saddest ex- 
perience of my life. In fact, at one time I gave up 
all hopes of living to see the next morning. I had 
never traveled through that country before and did 
not know the paths (for there were no roads) nor 
the directions. I was soon lost in the woods, in the 
thickets and heavy undergrowths, and wandered 
about until about midnight, when I came to a man's 
house out in the lonesome forest, far removed from 
the roadside or any other house. It was the hut of 
an Indian. He and his wife heard my call and came 
out to* the fence almost nude. Their very sight was 
frightful to me. I tried to tell them where I wanted 
to go, and in reply they gave me signs with their 
heads which were as meaningless to me as they 
were amusing. In fact, I could not understand 
them, and all I said was meaningless to them. I 
now saw that all efforts on my part to make myself 
understood were useless, and I left with about as 
much satisfaction as I had before I stopped. 

I continued to wander about until I came to a 
90 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

village called Monther Fork. I passed through the 
village to the outskirts; and there I stretched out 
on the ground, using my saddle as a pillow, where 
I remained until daybreak. I did not sleep or rest 
any because of the strangeness of the place and the 
many unsightly things thereabout. At the dawn 
of day I saw a man across the way feeding his stock. 
I went over and talked with him. He was a white 
man and could speak English. I was glad to find 
some one whom I could understand and who at the 
same time could understand me. He informed me 
that he was personally acquainted with Rev. Lemon 
Butler, one of my preachers, and took great care in 
pointing out the direction and describing the way 
by which I could reach his home. 

I was greatly encouraged and started out with 
renewed determination. It was shortly after seven 
o'clock when I reached the home of Rev. Butler. 
After he and his family found out who I was and 
my mission, they gladly took me in, gave me break- 
fast, and ministered to my comfort the best they 
could. After resting there awhile, these good peo- 
ple put me on the road to the church house, Brown's 
Chapel, named in honor of Dr. Robert Turner 
Brown, their former pastor, who built it. 

There I held the Indian Territory Mission Con- 
ference. . Some well-dressed Indians came out to 
hear me preach. They appeared friendly enough, 
but I could not get acquainted with their peculiar 
mannerism and apparent indifference. I saw many 

9* 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

hopeful signs for this Mission Conference. All in 
all, we had a fairly good Conference. 

At the adjournment of the Indian Territory Mis- 
sion Conference I started for the seat of my next 
Annual Conference, which was to be held at New- 
ton, Kans. I returned largely the way I went. 
When I got to Red River I lay out all night. The 
next morning I got an early start for Clarksville, 
and from there I went on to Sherman, Tex. In or- 
der to fill some engagements that had been made for 
me, I went up the Texas and Houston Central Rail- 
road to Stringtown, Ind. Ter., and other places in 
that section of the country. At Stringtown I had a 
very pleasant stay in the home of an aged man who 
once lived in my native town. It was, indeed, a 
pleasure to talk with him about the ways of the peo- 
ple in the Territory and the conditions that prevailed 
at that time in that new and open country. 

From Stringtown I went on to Newton, Kans., 
where I held our Annual Conference in the white 
people's church in Newton. The people, both white 
and colored, showed me every courtesy and made our 
work a success. I traveled over Kansas with Rev. 
Berry Smith. He was my strongest man out there, 
as was Rev. U. S. Smith in the Territory. These 
two old pioneers of our Church were great men in 
that day for the people of that country. They did a 
service for the race and Church that was far-reach- 
ing in its influence. The history of our Church work 
in the West would be incomplete without a full chap- 

92 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

ter being devoted to the work and sacrifices of those 
early fathers. God bless their memory ! 

At Newton we held a good Conference, at the 
close of which I hastened home to be with my fam- 
ily and to make preparation for the meeting of the 
General Conference at Little Rock, Ark. 

93 



CHAPTER XVI. 

The Seventh General Conference of the Col- 
ored Methodist Episcopal Church and 
Some Transpiring Events. 

Since the adjournment of the General Confer- 
ence that convened in Augusta, Ga., May 5, 1886, 
many important events had taken place within the 
Church. The general fund assessment created for 
the purpose of raising money with which to meet 
the obligations of the general Church had worked 
well and was far superior in results to anything 
that the Church had ever tried before. 

Mr. Samuel B. Wallace, a prominent layman of 
Columbia, S. C, resolved to leave the African Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church and come over to the Colored 
Methodist Episcopal Church. Others agreed to fol- 
low him ; and finally the whole membership, together 
with the congregation — the membership numbering 
about six hundred, with a following of something 
like fifteen hundred — came with him and joined the 
Colored Methodist Episcopal connection, bringing 
with them much valuable Church property. Wallace 
was a man of rare gifts and many talents, and soon 
after joining the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church he was licensed to preach. His stay in the 
local ranks was short, as his services were soon 
needed elsewhere. He rose rapidly into prominence, 
and at the time of his untimely death he was one of 

94 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

the most prominent preachers in the whole connec- 
tion. It was generally conceded that, had Wallace 
lived, he would have been called to the episcopacy of 
the Church of his- choice. His career in the ministry 
was short but brilliant, and his death was a subject 
of great lamentation throughout the connection. 

Among the Church schools that were now organ- 
ized were Lane College, Jackson, Tenn., Paine Col- 
lege, Augusta, Ga., Phillips College, Tyler, Tex., 
Hay good Seminary, Washington, Ark., and two 
Alabama schools located at Booker City and Tusca- 
loosa, Ala. 

From the above facts it can be easily seen that the 
approaching General Conference would be interest- 
ing. No bishops had been elected since the Confer- 
ence convened in Augusta, Ga., in 1873, and some of 
the delegates thought it well to elect at least one 
more bishop at this Conference. The advocates of 
the election of an additional bishop pointed out the 
fact that Bishop Miles was in feeble health and that 
Bishop Holsey was in need of rest and recuperation, 
and they urged the importance of the Conference's 
electing at least one more bishop. Much confusion 
and disputation existed among the brethren, and 
finally it was agreed to abandon the idea of increas- 
ing the number of bishops at this session of the Con- 
ference. Bishop Holsey asked to be relieved of epis- 
copal duties in order that he might regain his broken 
and impaired health. The matter was taken under 
advisement, and the bishops saw their way clear to 

95 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

lighten his duties and responsibilities, and this was 
done to the satisfaction of the Bishop and the Con- 
ference. 

The General Conference had established its rela- 
tion with all other Methodist bodies and had frater- 
nal delegates at the Ecumenical Conference and the 
General Conferences of all the other Methodist 
Churches, and thus with the close of the quadren- 
nium the Church was recognized as never before as 
a great power for good in this country. 

96 



CHAPTER XVII. 

The Great Need of a Denominational School 

— My Inspiration and Early Efforts — 

Founding of Lane College. 

I began the work of a bishop under great disad- 
vantages. Not having had the opportunity of early 
training in the science of letters, it was very embar- 
rassing to me to preach to congregations composed 
of so many persons who had enjoyed those advan- 
tages. Nevertheless, by consecrating myself to my 
Heavenly Father and applying myself to such books 
as I had, I got possession of a vocabulary of words 
and a line of thought that served me well on all oc- 
casions. Wherever I went, my services were accept- 
able, and the people heard me gladly. I continued 
to study, and by using all I had I grew in knowledge 
and power of speech. Above all, I wanted to be a 
good man, and when a young man I resolved that 
I would live a, pure, upright life before God and my 
fellow man. I knew that if I could not be learned 
or rich I could be upright in my life. 

I took special notice of the conditions of my peo- 
ple and found that our preachers needed a common- 
school education such as would enable them to read 
and write and speak the English language correctly. 
It became apparent to me that unless the minister 
were able to speak the native language correctly he 
would not be able to command respect and recog- 
7 97 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

nition from the better-informed members of the 
congregations, whose influence he most needed. 
We needed a training school. I saw also that we 
could not maintain our Church as a separate organi- 
zation without intelligent representatives who were 
able to defend its doctrines and support its polity. 
I realized, furthermore, that if other denominations 
trained our young people they would train them 
largely in their doctrines and Church usage, and that 
would mean that our people would be in a measure 
trained from our Church. So it became necessary 
and urgent for us to establish and operate a school 
of high grade for our Church. But what could I 
do? I was poor and had a large family of children 
to care for, and I had to work hard in order to give 
them a chance at an education and at the same time 
provide properly for their support. 

Some years before Bishop William Henry Miles 
saw the situation as clearly as I and attempted to 
carry out a scheme that was in keeping with his 
vision and the necessity of the hour, but his ambi- 
tion was too great and his plans were too big for 
the resources and wealth available to carry them into 
effect. He wanted to establish a system of schools, 
and a failure was inevitable. These observations 
did not make the field very inviting to me. I had 
been among the colored people a great deal, and 
I knew that they did not have much money and 
but little love for education. Just out of slavery, 
poor and ignorant, it was almost unthinkable for 

9 8 




OLD MAIN HALL, LANE COLLF.GE. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

them to own, control, and operate a high school or 
college. Such was looked upon as preposterous. 

Bishop L. H. Holsey spent several weeks in Ten- 
nessee raising money with which to purchase the 
grounds for a school to be located within the bounds 
of the State. I then came to the work and took it 
up where he had left off. The brethren had met 
with some reverses and were much disheartened. 
I met with them and soon had the situation and 
plans well in hand. We had raised enough money 
to buy the four acres of ground upon which the 
principal buildings now stand, paying cash for the 
same. Having accomplished this much, the enter- 
prise took on new life, and then we started out to 
construct a building. In the summer of 1882 the 
first building was erected at a cost of one thousand 
one hundred and fifty dollars. It was a two-story 
frame structure thirty-four feet by forty-four feet, 
containing a chapel, a library, and recitation rooms. 
The large attendance soon demanded a more accom- 
modating building, and thus we were pressed for 
more funds with which to operate the school and 
provide for the ever-increasing demands. We need- 
ed very much a room where the preachers might 
meet and read and study the Bible and the doctrines 
of Christ and his Church. I remember quite well 
how we would study such works as Binney's "Theo- 
logical Compend" and Wesley's "Lectures and Ser- 
mons." They were our textbooks. We would read 
and discuss the doctrines of the Church as we under- 

101 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

stood them, and in this way the ministers were great- 
ly improved in their knowledge of the Bible and the 
teachings of their Church. 

As the years passed by the school grew into prom- 
inence, and we found it imperative to have larger 
and better buildings. The success of this work in 
the early days was due to the careful management 
and the sacrifices on the part of so many earnest, 
upright Christian men and women who became in- 
terested in it. The trustees selected their teachers 
with care, and from the very beginning the work 
had the indorsement and encouragement of the best 
of our people. Among the trustees who were asso- 
ciated with me in the early days of this work were: 
Rev. W. T. Thomas, of Alabama; Rev. J. A. Hatch- 
er and Rev. P. A. Samples, of Kentucky; Revs. I. 
H. Anderson, S. Bobo, R. Bates, M. Ralston, Berry 
Cannon, and J. C. W. Smith, of Mississippi ; J. W. 
Thurston and G. L. Davis, of the Tennessee Annual 
Conference ; besides the following, of the West Ten- 
nessee Annual Conference: Revs. H. N. Snow, C. 
H. Lee, W. W. Sevier, M. D. Partee, W. M. Payne, 
W. H. Daniel, E. W. Moseley, R. T. James, H. 
Thompson, J. K. Daniel, Sandy Rivers, and Berry 
Smith. Among the early . teachers who rendered 
the Church and race great service as teachers in the 
early days of this work, we might mention with 
propriety Miss Jennie E. Lane (now Mrs. N. C. 
Cleaves), Prof. J. H. Harper, Dr. C. H. Phillips, 
Prof. T. J. Austin, Prof. E. W. Benton, Prof. E. 

1 02 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

W. Bailey, and Prof. E. L. Honesty. All of these 
men and many others equally as earnest and deserv- 
ing helped to lay the foundation for a work that is 
now known extensively as Lane College. 

Rapid Developments. 

Because of the labors of these men, Lane Institute 
(now Lane College) grew rapidly in public favor 
and gained prestige. The one crying need was 
larger and more modern buildings in which to carry 
on the work and provide for the care and protection 
of the many young men and young women who were 
coming from different States to enter. It was ap- 
parent that the main hall would cost at least fifteen 
thousand dollars, besides the furniture and equip- 
ment. This was a great outlay of money for our 
people and required sacrifice on the part of those 
who had challenged the cause. In 1895 this building 
was completed; and in the fall of the same year, 
October 23, in the presence of a large concourse of 
people, it was dedicated to the cause of Christian 
education by Bishop R. S. Williams, of Augusta, 
Ga. Bishop Williams was assisted in this work by 
Bishop Elias Cottrell, Dr. C. H. Phillips (then edi- 
tor of the Christian Index, now bishop), and several 
of the trustees of the college. I acted as master of 
ceremonies. 

After this building had been erected and fur- 
nished, there were other demands made upon us. 
Our boarding department was not sufficient to care 

103 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

for the number of students who were coming to us 
from other places. This forced us to provide for 
a dormitory for the young men and at the same time 
enlarge the one we had for the young women. This 
meant an expenditure of something like ten thousand 
dollars more. Two cottages and an industrial hall 
were afterwards erected. 

These buildings served the purpose of the school 
until November 4, 1904, when a disastrous fire com- 
pletely destroyed the plant. Our loss was great, 
and we had but little insurance on the property. It 
was a sad scene on that dark and cloudy night, 
amidst the sprinkling of rain, to see go up in smoke 
and down in ashes buildings that had cost so much 
in labor, prayers, and suffering. The school that 
was in session was put out of doors, and what to do 
was the one great question that confronted us. 
When the money from the insurance companies was 
collected, we had less than ten thousand dollars. We 
constructed a temporary building in which to con- 
tinue the school work the best we could. By plac- 
ing the young men in the city, we took care of the 
girls in the young men's hall, which by chance had 
been saved, and under these unfavorable conditions 
the work went forward during the year. 

In passing over this period of time we must stop 
long enough just here to make mention of the inter- 
est and help bestowed upon us by the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, South. In all of our struggles 
we found the members of this Church, together with 

104 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

their bishops and leaders, anxious to help. They 
made contributions from the very beginning and are 
helping to foster and carry on the work now. 

In 1886 we petitioned the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, to furnish us a teacher, one who 
could give instruction in the science of theology. 
The very next year they selected for this work the 
Rev. T. F. Saunders, D.D., of the Memphis Confer- 
ence. Dr. Saunders devoted thirteen years of his 
life to this work and did what he could for its ad- 
vancement. During these years Dr. Saunders served 
as President of the school and Professor of Theol- 
ogy, and much good work was done under his ad- 
ministration. He retired from the work with the 
confidence and respect of all who knew him. 

During this time I traveled extensively among my 
people and among the white people, making appeals 
for financial assistance. I sold tracts, pamphlets of 
all kinds, books, pictures, and the like, and applied 
the proceeds from the sale of these articles to the 
building fund. I made public addresses, delivered 
lectures, and preached sermons. By taking up col- 
lections and by private solicitations and public ap- 
peals we raised money with which to establish and 
carry on this work. God gave me strength and 
health, and I used these in his name. 

When the last dollar on the old buildings had been 
paid and I had about decided to turn my attention to 
the mission work of the Church, the disastrous fire 
of 1904, of which I have already spoken, took place. 

107 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

The years of toil and suffering entailed in raising 
money for our educational work will never be for- 
gotten by me. Regarded by some as a crank on 
the subject of education, by others as a beggar, I 
was ofttimes rejected; but I continued to work and 
pray, receiving just enough consideration to give en- 
couragement. While some men of wealth and influ- 
ence refused me even an audience, others made 
small donations and thus kept me in good . spirits 
and in good cheer. I continued to work, showing 
much earnestness, and thus grew in favor with the 
people of our race, as well as with the people of the 
white race. In accomplishing the work I have done 
for the educational uplift of the young people of our 
race the world will never know of the pain, toil, 
suffering, the many sleepless nights, headaches, and 
the mental and physical anguish I endured all of 
those years. 

108 



CHAPTER XVIII. 
A Year of Great Trial and Severe Affliction. 

As I look over the past twenty-one years of my 
career, I regard the year 1904 as being one of great 
trial and affliction for me. On September 14 of 
that year I lost by fire some valuable personal prop- 
erty, the results of years of sacrifice and toil. The 
insurance did not begin to cover the actual loss. On 
October 14, while en route to Warrensburg, Mo., to 
hold the Missouri and Kansas Annual Conference, 
an excursion train collided with a through freight 
train about three miles east of Warrensburg. We 
got there in time to see the sight, with all of its hor- 
rors and sufferings. I had never seen so many dead 
and wounded people before. Two little boys died 
after we reached the scene. It was enough to move 
the hardest heart to tears. 

It was during this Conference session that I re- 
ceived a letter from my wife telling me that our old 
family horse had died. From that Conference I 
hurried home for a few days' rest and recreation. 
But before I had rested from the trip the principal 
buildings of Lane College were destroyed by fire. 
This took place Wednesday , night, November 4, 
1904. Our loss^ was upward of thirty thousand 
dollars. It was a sad time for me. I was about to 
give the work up; but my friends, both white and 
colored, said, "No ; let's build again," and I set out 
to rebuild. 

109 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

On December 27 my dearly beloved son, the Rev. 
Charles Wesley Lane, D.D., pastor of our Church at 
New Madrid, Mo., came to visit me. He had spent 
only two days before he took critically ill and died. 
He was one of the most talented of my children and 
the only one who felt a divine call to the ministry. 
His career, although short, was brilliant, and his 
life was useful. He was the pastor of a good many 
of our largest and best charges and as such rendered 
great service as a preacher and pastor. For four 
years he presided over the Memphis District, win- 
ning much credit to himself and honor to his God. 
His death brought great grief to me. I then count- 
ed the words of Job: "The Lord giveth, and the 
Lord taketh away." His death was a sore trial ; but 
the Lord was with me, and I said: "Though he 
smite me, yet will I trust him." 

The New Lane College. 

We now come to a period of great activity. The 
principal buildings at Lane College had been de- 
stroyed in the awful fire of 1904, and I had made it 
up in my mind to undertake the work of rebuilding. 

The first and most needed building was a main 
hall, in which recitation rooms, classrooms, study 
halls, chapels, library, and office rooms might be had. 
We employed Mr. R. A. Heavner, of Jackson, to 
draw up the plans and specifications for such a build- 
ing. We gave him an idea of what we wanted; and, 
after several months of waiting, he presented a sug- 

110 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

gestive plan. With some modifications, this plan 
was accepted, and the specifications were all drawn 
and accepted by the building committee appointed 
by the Board of Trustees. These plans called for a 
building one hundred and twenty-eight feet long by 
seventy-six feet wide, three stories high, brick with 
stone trimmings, and a flat roof. It was a most 
beautiful structure, well built, having large assembly 
rooms, study halls, recitation and lecture rooms, a 
library, a reading room, a chapel, laboratories, and 
the like. This building, together with its furnish- 
ings, cost nearly thirty thousand dollars. It was 
completed in 1906. 

Rev. T. F. Saunders retired from the presidency 
of the school in the spring of 1903 and was succeed- 
ed by Rev. J. A. Bray, A.M., LL.D. Rev. Bray 
took charge November 17, 1903, and continued until 
June, 1907. The fire took place and the work of 
reconstruction began during the years of his admin- 
istration. 

Before the main hall had been paid for, work on 
the girls' dormitory was begun. The campaign for 
funds was on, to remain until the old buildings were 
replaced by larger and more modern ones. This 
hall is a large, well-constructed, three-story brick 
structure with stone trimmings and a metallic roof, 
containing the kitchen, laundry, dining hall, recep- 
tion rooms, the Young Women's Christian Associa- 
tion room, and dormitory rooms to accommodate 
sixty-four voung ladies. This building, together 
8 113 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

with a large heating plant, cost about twenty-one 
thousand dollars. In order to accommodate the 
grounds with reference to the proper location of the 
new buildings, some of the old buildings had to be 
moved, and the campus then took on a new form. 
The President's home was moved, as was also the 
Industrial Hall, and thus the new and greater Lane 
College began to make its appearance. 

The third building to be erected was the boys' 
dormitory. The plans and specifications for this 
building were drawn by Mr. Moses McKissack, of 
Nashville, Tenn., and called for a three-story brick 
structure, containing dormitory rooms, the Young 
Men's Christian Association room, reception hall, 
workshop for the boys, and a suite of rooms for the 
preceptress. This building was constructed by Mr. 
William Burrows, a contractor and builder of Mem- 
phis, Term., for nineteen thousand six hundred and 
thirty-nine and one-half dollars. With the heating 
and lighting and other furnishings, the building cost 
nearly twenty-five thousand dollars. Toward the 
erection of this hall the General Education Board 
of New York made a donation of seven thousand 
dollars. This was done in 19 12. 

The college has been working for the uplift of 
our people for thirty-four years; and the results 
are seen not so much in the valuation of the property 
to be found on the grounds, but its greatest work is 
seen in the men and women who have been trained 
within its walls — persons whose minds and hearts 

114 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

have been touched and inspired with the spirit of 
Christ, who while on earth went about doing good 
wherever an opportunity presented itself. Up to the 
time of my retirement as an active bishop I had 
raised more than one hundred thousand dollars for 
this work. The buildings may not stand, the repu- 
tation may pass from among men, but the work will 
remain forever. 

117 



CHAPTER XIX. 

My Labor as a Church Expansionist — Work- 
ing in the Mission Field. 

The greater part of my life as a bishop has been 
spent in the mission Conferences, especially in the 
North and West. Here I observed our people mov- 
ing from the South and East in great numbers, and 
it became clear to me that unless we followed them 
up with our Church organization they would soon 
be lost to the connection. The changed civic and 
economic conditions in the South, the constant agi- 
tation of the race question by political demagogues, 
the lynchings, and other unjust treatment accorded 
the colored people are responsible for the manifest 
unrest and the grim determination on the part of so 
many members of our race to migrate to the North 
and West,- where a change for the better with respect 
to some of these conditions, if not to all of them, 
can be had. 

Among the many mission points I began which 
have grown into good, self-supporting charges are 
the following — viz. : Lane Tabernacle, Cleveland, 
Ohio, organized in 1902 with about twenty-four 
members, has to-day property valued at more than 
thirteen thousand dollars and a membership of one 
hundred and fifty. St. Paul Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church, Chicago, 111., organized about ten 
years ago, now has Church property valued at twelve 

118 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

thousand five hundred dollars and a membership of 
five hundred. Lane Chapel, St. Louis, Mo., organ- 
ized about fifteen years ago, now has Church prop- 
erty valued at twenty-five thousand dollars and a 
membership of five hundred. Kansas City (Mo.) 
Station, organized about sixteen years ago, now has 
Church property valued at ten thousand dollars and 
a membership of one hundred and eighty. Kansas 
City, Kans., was organized about eighteen years 
ago and now has property valued at ten thousand 
dollars and a membership of one hundred and eigh- 
ty-five. Lane Chapel, Topeka, Kans., organized 
about nineteen years ago, has Church property val- 
ued at twenty-five thousand dollars and a member- 
ship of three hundred. Oklahoma City, Okla., was 
organized about fifteen years ago and now has 
Church property valued at twelve thousand dollars 
and a membership of two hundred. Muskogee, 
Okla., was organized about twelve years ago and 
now has Church property valued at thirty thousand 
dollars and a membership of three hundred. Tulsa, 
Okla., was organized twelve years ago and now has 
Church property worth three thousand five hundred 
dollars and a membership of one hundred and twen- 
ty-five. Champaign, 111., was organized about eight- 
een years ago and now has property worth five thou- 
sand dollars and two hundred and twenty-five mem- 
bers. East St. Louis, 111., was organized about 
twelve years ago and now has Church property 

119 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 



worth three thousand dollars and about one hundred 
and twenty members. 

These are only a few of the many Churches in 
mission territory that were organized through my 
personal efforts and official direction. There are 
many smaller and less conspicuous appointments that 
mean equally as much to the progress of the Church 
and the saving of men that might with propriety be 
mentioned. Suffice it to say that I labored unself- 
ishly, and, on the whole, God blessed my labors. 

In doing this work for our Church I made it a 
point to keep in sympathetic touch, with our friends, 
and especially those who were able to give assistance. 
On Monday mornings, where there were such meet- 
ings, I would visit the Ministerial Alliance of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and would talk 
with them and pray for them. I did not hesitate 
to make known our needs and our desires. Occa- 
sionally they would give a helpful suggestion or 
encourage me in a more substantial way. In St. 
Louis, Mo., where I have a host of friends among 
both white and colored people, Mr. Richard Scruggs 
(white) became so much impressed with the impor- 
tance and necessity of our work in that great and 
rapidly growing city that he gave five thousand sev- 
en hundred dollars to our Church. This is the larg- 
est gift ever made to a Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church of which I have any knowledge. In other 
places we solicited smaller sums. While in them- 
selves these contributions were not great, they were 

120 




' '?§': Lain 6 'llASERNic 



suit 



LANE TABERNACLE, ST. LOUIS, MO. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

sufficient to give our members encouragement and 
served the very great purpose of an incentive for 
them to do their very best. 

This kind of constructive work in mission fields 
has been so attractive to me sometimes that I feel I 
was called especially to do it. If one would stop 
and think long enough, he would see that from 
Cleveland, Ohio, on the east, to Muskogee, Okla., on 
the west, our strongest appointments were begun 
under my administration. 

I have not spoken of my work accomplished in 
the South, as this is well known by the Church at 
large. In the North and West it was freely predict- 
ed that these organizations would be a great burden 
upon the general Church. But I did not see it that 
way. I asked the general Church for some financial 
assistance at certain strategic points, and it gave 
some little help. Time has vindicated all the claims 
I made for this work ; and instead of being a burden 
to the general Church, they are a great help in that 
they give their support to all the general interests of 
the Church and contribute their share in the support 
of all its work. 

The great Northwest is a wealthy section of our 
country and one that has hardly been touched by 
our Church. It presents a splendid field of rare 
opportunities to us. The foundation has already 
been laid, and my successors can go forward with 
the construction in keeping with their increased 
strength and enlarged opportunities. 

123 



CHAPTER XX. 
Church Activities in Recent Years. 

The past ten years have been marked by many 
activities within the Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church in America. For the most part, these move- 
ments have been wide in their scope and helpful in 
their results. The Colored Methodist Episcopal 
Church is seen, perhaps, at its best in its educational 
work and activity. During the period of time under 
our survey just now Lane College, at Jackson, 
Tenn., and Paine College, at Augusta, Ga., have 
doubled their holdings, their plants to-day being 
valued at more than one hundred thousand dollars 
each. Phillips College, at Tyler, Tex., has virtually 
been reestablished and is now, in point of facilities 
and scope of work, far in advance of what it was 
prior to this period. The same is true of Miles 
Memorial College, at Birmingham, Ala., and the 
Homer Industrial College, at Homer, La. This 
period embraces the time of the founding and estab- 
lishing of the Mississippi Industrial College, at Holly 
Springs, Miss., and the Arkansas Industrial College, 
at Pine Bluff, Ark., both of which from their very 
organization have had remarkable growth. 

Be it said to the credit of all of those who have 
been interested in this work that the sacrifices made 
by our people in establishing these schools have 
called forth the applause and words of commenda- 

124 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

tion of the friends of Christian education the coun- 
try over, and their success has done much toward 
establishing the confidence our people have in them- 
selves and their ability to provide in a way for their 
own educational advancement. A friendly rivalry 
between the patronizing bishops and Conferences 
fostering the various educational institutions has 
helped in the raising of large sums of money for 
this very worthy cause. 

In 19 io the General Conference of our Church 
convened in Augusta, Ga. This Conference was 
largely attended. As usual, the greatest interest 
was centered in the election of the bishops and gen- 
eral officers. Contrary to our custom and all prec- 
edents, some ambitious men resorted to political 
methods to promote their friends and measures. I 
do not mean to say that all of the previous General 
Conferences had been free from political trickery. 
Such could not be successfully maintained. But I 
do assert that never before was there so much bold- 
ness and affrontery as was displayed at this Confer- 
ence in such methods and actions. As a natural re- 
sult, some of the brethren became distrustful of the 
others and at every point showed their distrust by 
being ready to impugn their motives and call into 
question their integrity and honor. This was very 
unfortunate and greatly embarrassed the Church 
and its work during the quadrennium. 

Despite all of these unfavorable conditions, this 
Conference did some very good work. The Disci- 

127 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

pline of the Church was revised; the ministerial 
course of study was enriched and otherwise im- 
proved upon; an appellate court for the trial of min- 
isters was created ; and a more friendly relation to- 
ward all other evangelical Churches, especially those 
of the Methodist persuasion, was strengthened and 
established. In a hotly contested election the Rev. 
M. F. Jamison, D.D., of Texas, and the Rev. George 
W. Stewart, D.D., of Alabama, were elected to the 
office of bishop. These brethren had served the 
Church in various capacities and were promoted in 
recognition of their services to the Church. 

At this writing (1916) Bishop M. F. Jamison, 
D.D., presides over the Fifth Episcopal District, 
where he is held in high esteem by both laymen and 
ministers. Bishop George W. Stewart, D.D., served 
the Church as bishop only two years, when he be- 
came entangled with some money matters in Ala- 
bama which resulted in his being retired without 
salary by the General Conference that met in St. 
Louis in 19 14. During the very next year (191 5) 
the Bishop died, leaving a wife and several children 
and the Church at large to mourn his death. 

The General Conference of 19 10 elected the Rev. 
A. J. Cobb, A.B., D.D., of Georgia, to the office of 
editor of the Christian Index. During the quad- 
rennium following this Conference, when there were 
so many divisions and so much confusion and dis- 
satisfaction in the Church, Editor Cobb displayed 
many excellent traits of a rounded Christian charac- 

128 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

ter. His editorial policy was of a conciliatory na- 
ture, and he left the office in 19 14 with the full con- 
fidence and respect of the Church at large. Dr. 
Cobb took seriously ill in 19 15 and died at his home, 
in Barnesville, Ga., surrounded by a host of admir- 
ing friends. He is survived by Mrs. Helena B. 
Cobb, the efficient Principal of the H. B. Cobb Fe- 
male Institute, the only school of its kind fostered 
by our Methodism. It is located in Barnesville, Ga, 
The quadrennium following the General Confer- 
ence of 19 10 was marked by the passing into the 
great beyond of a good many of the most prominent 
of our Churchmen. Among these were Rev.' G. F. 
Welch, of Alabama, Rev. W. B. West, D.D., of 
Texas, Rev. J. H. Coley, D.D., of Alabama, Rev. 
Ralston, of Louisiana, Rev. V. Washington, of 
Alabama, and Rev. R. O. Williams, of Louisiana. 
These brethren were closely followed by Bishop 
George W. Stewart, Rev. Henry Bullock, Dr. A. J. 
Cobb, Rev. J. B. Washington, Rev. I. S. Person, 
D.D., Rev. J. W. Smith, A.M., and two prominent 
laymen, Mr. L. F. Few, of Oklahoma, and Mr. J. 
B. Meadows, of Memphis, Tenn. 

"Servant of God, well done ! 
Thy glorious warfare's past ; 
The battle's fought, the race is won, 
And thou art crowned at last." 
9 I2 9 



CHAPTER XXL 

The Thirteenth General Conference of the 

Colored Methodist Episcopal Church 

in America. 

The thirteenth General Conference of the Col- 
ored Methodist Episcopal Church in America con- 
vened in Lane Tabernacle, St. Louis, Mo., in May, 
1914. At the very opening of the session all of the 
bishops were present, and a full set of the delegates 
were in their seats ready to answer to the roll call. 
This was the first time in the history of the Colored 
Methodist Episcopal Church in America that a Gen- 
eral Conference convened in a city north of the 
Mason and Dixon line. 

The following work was done during the two and 
one-half weeks' session: The Department of Minis- 
terial Relief and Support and the Department of 
Education were created. A financial budget for the 
quadrennium was made, and the amount of money 
required each year to meet the demands of the gen- 
eral Church (seventy-five thousand dollars) was 
placed as an assessment on the Church at large and 
then prorated to the various Annual Conferences to 
be raised. The salary of the bishops was increased 
from two thousand dollars to two thousand two 
hundred and fifty dollars, so as to relieve them 
of all embarrassment as to their railroad expenses 
in traveling over their dioceses. At my own request, 

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AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

the General Conference gave me a retired relation ; 
and, according to the provisions already made for 
their retired bishops, six hundred dollars was set 
aside as a yearly stipend for my support. The Con- 
ference went on record as favoring many reforms 
in the Church. Some were necessary, while others 
were not altogether out of place. 

The Church had been greatly embarrassed because 
of charges of misapplication of Church funds on the 
part of Bishop George W. Stewart, D.D., and the 
Rev. Henry Bullock, D.D., the Book Agent, who 
had resigned his office during the quadrennium. 
There were charges also of unbecoming conduct on 
the part of Bishop Elias Cottrell, D.D. These 
charges and rumors caused a cloud to hang over the 
skies of Church people which did not pass away by 
a vote of the brethren or by impassioned appeals 
made by interested persons who discussed the mat- 
ter. Bishop Cottrell was given a vote of confidence 
on the part of the Conference in that his character 
was passed, and he was continued as one of the bish- 
ops of the Church. As has already been stated, 
Bishop Stewart was retired without salary ; and the 
Rev. Henry Bullock, D.D., was allowed to adjust his 
alleged shortage in whatever way he could. 

Amid all of these things there was the usual in- 
terest manifested in the election of the bishops and 
other general officers. My retirement was the strong 
argument advanced by those in favor of an increase 
in the number of bishops, and it became clear that 

131 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

the Conference would elect two or more bishops at 
this Conference. There were an unusually large 
number of aspirants in the field, and they were not 
slow in making it known that they had an ambition 
to serve the Church in that capacity. I hope the 
time is not far off when the Church will consider 
any man unworthy who will urge his election to the 
office of a bishop or seek to organize his friends 
with that in view. Be it said to the credit of this 
Conference that there was but little, if any, wire- 
pulling on the part of "friends" seeking promotion. 
We want to see less and less until there will not be 
observed any semblance of such in the Church of the 
living God. 

There was no election for bishop on the first bal- 
lot. On the second ballot the Rev. R. A. Carter, 
A.M., D.D., of Atlanta, Ga., and the Rev. Nelson 
C. Cleaves, D.D., of Columbia, S. C, each having 
received the votes of a majority of the delegates, 
were declared bishops elect of the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church in America. These young men 
represent the product of our own schools; and be- 
cause of their training and wide acquaintance with 
the Church, its history and polity, they should be 
able to serve the Church and race in a large and most 
effective manner. 

Having accomplished much valuable legislation in 
behalf of the Church, the General Conference ad- 
journed, and the work of the Conference became a 
matter of history. 

132 



CHAPTER XXII. 
Death of Mrs. Frances A. Lane. 

[From the Christian Index.] 

Sister Frances A. Lane, wife of Bishop Isaac 
Lane, was born in Haywood County, Tenn., Octo- 
ber 16, 1834, and died May 11, 1895, at 8:45 a.m., 
aged sixty years, six months, and twenty-five days. 
The deceased was married to Bishop Isaac Lane 
December 24, 1853, and lived in holy wedlock forty- 
one years, four months, and seventeen days. There 
were born to them during these years of devoted 
companionship twelve children, five of whom were 
sons and seven daughters. Sister Lane enlisted in 
the cause of Christ at a prayer meeting in the fall 
of 1864 and joined the Methodist Church at Salem. 
She transferred her membership to Liberty Church, 
Jackson, Tenn., in 1868, where for twenty-seven 
years she lived a faithful member and a consistent 
Christian. 

As a wife she was devoted and affable, contrib- 
uting largely to the comfort and happiness of her 
husband, sharing his sorrows and burdens, and was 
a factor in all the accomplishments of him who 
mourns his loss. 

As a mother she was gentle, kind, and affection- 
ate, imparting that instruction, by precept and ex- 
ample, which is embodied in the words of Solomon: 
"Train up a child in the way he should go." Her 

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AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

gentle and loving hand, like a magic wand, has led 
a large family through the meandering of childhood 
into manhood and womanhood and bequeathed to 
them the legacy of noble sentiments and lofty aspi- 
rations. 

As a Christian she was meek, yet persistent; 
quiet, but firm; steady, but true. In her was the 
combination of those qualities which made her life 
"shine more and more unto the perfect day." 
Steady, firm, and true to the end, it may be said 
of her that she kept the faith, finished her course, 
and is now in that land of Beulah, joined with her 
loved ones, where the wicked shall cease to trouble 
and the weary are at rest. 

Your Wife Is in Heaven; We'll Meet Her Again. 

(A Poem Dedicated to Bishop Isaac Lane.) 
BY SOLOMON G. BROWN. 

Dear Friend: Sad news comes here to-day 
That God has called your wife away; 
For forty years she's been your bride, 
But now she's taken from your side. 

None more than you can feel her loss ; 
None know but you what it has cost. 
By words you can't describe your pain, 
And feel you'll ne'er get right again. 

You'll meet her when this life is o'er, 
Then you will meet to part no more ; 
You'll meet your wife in heaven above, 
Where all is joy and peace and love. 

134 




MR?. FRANCES ANN BOYCE LANE. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

You'll meet her at the throne of God ; 
She'll introduce you to the Lord ; 
She'll meet you at the pearly gate 
And all her heavenly joys relate. 

The cutting pain has reached your heart 
Because your wife from you did part; 
So long you've traveled through this life 
As lovers, husband, father, wife. 

We mourn with you and share your grief ; 
Could we but offer sure relief ! 
Just how you feel no one can tell 
But Christ, who doeth all things well. 

He saw it best that she should go 
And leave this world of pain and woe ; 
And when she bowed to him in prayer 
He came from heaven and met her there. 

Just when she started from her knee 
He softly said, "Rise, follow me" ; 
Heard her prayer and deemed it best 
That he should call her home to rest. 

While down at prayer she heard the call ; 
She quickly rose, was seen to fall ; 
Her body struggled for its breath 
Till finally o'ercome by death. 

On her he laid his hands of ice, 
Her soul steals out and goes with Christ ; 
Forever there her soul will stay. 
Where there's but one eternal day. 

J 37 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

That dreadful news soon spread around, 
That Bishop Lane's dear wife had gone ; 
This news a sad impression made 
On all who learned their friend was dead. 

Her friends stood grieving o'er her form, 
From which a precious soul had gone — 
Gone where ? Can any mortal say ? 
And is that soul at rest to-day? 

At rest ! O yes, as Jesus lives, 
A full assurance she would give. 
While death relieves her from all pain, 
She's dead, but rose to life again 

To-day she wears the heavenly palm, 
Free from all the tempter's harm, 
Falls prostrate at the feet of God, 
Where she receives her great reward. 

Her joys are full, her griefs are o'er; 
She meets with thousands gone before — 
Relatives, kindred, neighbors, friends — 
Whose union there will never end. 

She's given up all cares of life 

And all her duties as a wife; 

She freely parts with all she owns 

To take her place around God's throne. 

You've lost a loving, faithful wife, 
Who's been your bosom friend through life; 
She loved you dear, but when God called 
She followed him and gave up all. 

138 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

To God's will we all must bow ; 
'Tis hard, but Christ will teach us how. 
We know our loss is her great gain ; 
She's free from strife, released from pain. 

Look on her form ; look, friends, and weep — 

So calm, so peaceful, fast asleep. 

Will any mortal dare profane 

Or say one word against God's name? 

Who gave her life? Who takes away? 
Who fixed the limits of her stay? 
If she has made her peace with God, 
She goes to meet that great reward. 

This is God's plan. O brother, yield 
W r hile you her loss so deeply feel ; 
Give her to Christ, where she belongs ; 
Prepare to join the heavenly throng. 

Soon you shall meet in realms above, 
And join her in that perfect love, 
Where you'll be truly one in heart, 
From each and Christ will never part. 

Sleep sound, dear one, so free from stain ; 
Sleep in the tomb where Christ was lain ; 
Sleep there in peace till that great day 
When all will rise and come away. 

Farewell, dear wife ; we'll meet no more 
Till I come down to Jordan's shore. 
For this shall be my earnest prayer, 
That you, with Christ, shall meet me there. 
Washington, P. C. 

139 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

She was affectionately kind to all of her husband's 
friends, and especially to preachers. As a hostess 
she found great pleasure in providing for their 
comfort. She had the highest regard for Bishops 
William Henry Miles, J. A. Beebe, and L. H. Hol- 
sey, and Bishops Williams and Cottrell were win- 
ning her affections. She entertained Bishop Henry 
M. Turner one week in her home, which visit he 
mentioned quite frequently in his public addresses. 
As a husband, I have lost a true, affectionate wife, 
a great and good woman. As a mother, my chil- 
dren have lost a kind and loving one. She strove 
earnestly, both by precept and example, to rear her 
children right. But she is gone, to come to us no 
more. Her place in our home circle is vacant. Our 
loss is irreparable. 

Below is a select sentiment of sympathy from a 
few of the letters and telegrams from our many 
friends : 

Washington, D. C. 

Dear Bishop Lane: Your telegram of the death of 
your dear wife brought sorrow to our hearts and 
sadness to our home. It was the mysterious provi- 
dence of God in taking her so suddenly from you. 
You have my prayers. May God bless you and 
family ! Bishop R. S. Williams. 

Washington, N. C. 
I am surprised to hear of the sudden death of 
your dear wife, Sister Lane. You and family have 
my sympathy and prayers. God bless you and sus- 
tain you ! Bishop J. A. Beebe. 

140 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Charleston, S. C. 
Bishop Lane: I am in great sympathy with you in 
the loss of your dear wife. God bless you ! 

Bishop M. B. Salter. 

Augusta, Ga. 
Yours just received. I am perfectly and pro- 
foundly shocked to receive the sad intelligence of 
the death of your dear wife. Little did I think that 
I was taking the last look at her pleasant face and 
smiling countenance just five days ago. God bless 
you! Bishop L. H. Holsey. 

Holly Springs, Miss. 
Dear Bishop Lane: I am sad to hear of the death 
of your dear wife. God bless and support you in 
this your sore affliction ! Bishop E. Cottrell. 

Louisville, Ky. 
You have my sympathy in your great bereave- 
ment. Prepare to meet your dear wife on the shores 
of sweet deliverance. 

Dr. David Morton, Sec. Church Ex. Dept. 

The following are the names of a few of our 
friends who have sent us letters of sympathy which 
we take this opportunity of acknowledging: Rev. O. 
T. Womack and wife, Longview, Tex. ; Hon. Ed- 
mund Geary, Philadelphia, Pa. ; Rev. R. T. Lewis, 
Denton, Tex. ; Rev. W. S. Battle, Northport, Ala. ; 
Rev. A. J. Harrington, Prescott, Ark. ; Rev. W. E. 
Stewart, Frankfort, Kans. ; Rev. J. T. Clay, Center- 
ville, Miss. ; Hon. W. P. Churchill, Louisville, Ky. ; 
Rev. M. Walton, Sardis, Miss. ; Rev. P. A. Sowell, 
Clarksville, Tenn. ; Rev. W. A. Jackson, Covington, 
Ky. ; Rev. J. M. Porter, Rutherford, Tenn. ; Rev. 

141 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

J. F. Fitzpatrick, Smith Station, Ala. ; Prof. D. W. 
Byrd, Central Tennessee College, Nashville, Tenn. ; 
Rev. E. Wills, Memphis, Tenn. ; Rev. A. K. Haw- 
kins, Jackson, Miss. ; Rev. J. H. Bell, Trenton, 
Tenn. ; Mrs. Oscar S. Ridley, Memphis, Tenn. ; 
Prof. M. W. Dogan, Central Tennessee College, 
Nashville, Tenn. ; Mrs. Susie Payne, Louisville, Ky. ; 
Mrs. H. E. Hamilton, Washington, D. C. ; Mrs. F. 
P. Moseley, Newbern, Tenn. ; Miss S. A. C. Harper, 
Chattanooga, Tenn. ; Mrs. Miami Davis, Washing- 
ton, Ark. ; Mr. and Mrs. L. G. Murray, Meridian, 
Miss. ; Mrs. S. E. Watkins, Jackson, Tenn. ; Miss 
E. M. Carter, Shreveport, La. ; Miss Mollie Mc- 
Williams, Memphis, Tenn. ; Mr. J. A. Wilson, Ashe- 
ville, N. C. ; Mrs. Lizzie Clairborne, Brownsville, 
Tenn. ; Miss S. B. Nichols, Nashville, Tenn. ; Mrs. 
N. J. Curry, Washington, Ark. ; Mr. J. L. Bayliss, 
Dresden, Tenn. ; Miss Addie Melton, Knoxville, 
Tenn. ; Mrs. Mary E. Smith, Marshall, Tex. ; and a 
host of others, besides the Christian Index, the Chris- 
tian Advocate, the Tennessee Methodist, the Jack- 
son Whig, pastor and members of Capers Chapel, 
and pastor and members of Lane Tabernacle. All 
have spoken words of sympathy and consolation in 
this hour of our sore affliction. We hereby ac- 
knowledge our friends' notice of us. 

Isaac Lane and Family. 
142 



CHAPTER Will. 

HlOCKAI'IIK \i. Ski.ic 11 I'.S OK TIM. lilSIIOI'S OP THE 

Colored m ethodist Episcopal ( !hurch 
in America. 

Rt. Rev, Bishop William Henry Miles, 

Bishop William IIknky Milks, the first bishop 
of our beloved Methodism, the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church in America, was born in Spring 
field, Washington County, Ky., December 26, [828, 
and died in LouisvilU-, Ky., November [4, [892, 
aged sixty-three years, ten months, and eighteen 
days. In [859 he was married to Miss Krances K. 
Arnold, of Lebanon, Ky., with whom he lived to 1 1 1<- 
day of bis death. Eight children blessed their union. 
Me joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 
in [855 on probation and was happily converted in 
October of thai year. He was licensed to preach in 

[857 and Was ordained dcae< >n in [859 by Bishop 
Andrew, of that Church, Mis term of service as 

pastor or presiding elder was short, the first < reneral 
Conference electing him bishop in 1870. Me served 

as senior bishop of his ( Inn < h l< »r twenty tWO years. 

1 )uring all of these years he was recognized as a man 
of great influence and power. To write of bis life 
and activities during these years would mean a his- 
tory of the ( 'I lurch during that same period of time. 
His life and activities wen- so connected with those 

E43 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

of his Church that the one cannot be recorded with- 
out writing of the other. Bishop Miles was a mag- 
netic preacher. Great crowds would come from far 
and near to hear this great gospel preacher. He 
would travel, lecture, and preach, carrying books, 
pamphlets, and tracts of all kinds, which he would 
sell or give away in order to acquaint the people with 
the work of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church 
and thus establish it as an organization among the 
people of this country. He was a matchless orator. 
His thoughts were ponderous, his manner of deliv- 
ery was attractive, and his discourses teemed with 
great spiritual power. I remember the first sermon 
I heard him preach. He took for his text the 
twenty-second verse of the fourteenth chapter of 
the Acts, which reads as follows: "Confirming the 
souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to con- 
tinue in the faith, and that we must through much 
tribulation enter into the kingdom of God." After 
giving historical data covering much of the experi- 
ences of the disciples, he then told of the afflictions 
and suffering they had to endure in order to bring 
the truth of the gospel to light. He pointed out the 
many things we had to endure in this life to enter 
the kingdom. of grace and then the heavenly king- 
dom. He spoke with much feeling as to how we 
suffered in order that the truth of our Church might 
be brought to light. His argument was a forcible 
one. Having a strong personality, a rich flow of 
language, and a general acquaintance with men and 

144 




WW T 




10 



BISHOP W. H. MILES. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

the affairs of this life, he was able to sway his audi- 
ences regardless of classes. He had a message for 
them all. As a parliamentarian and organizer 
Bishop Miles had no superior and but few equals. 
After his death I collected funds with which to erect 
a suitable monument to mark the last resting place 
of all that was mortal of this prince of Israel. His 
remains were deposited in the Cave Hill Cemetery, 
in Louisville, Ky. ; and I never consider my visit to 
that city complete without going out and paying a 
tribute of respect to the memory of a man who was 
to our Church what Asbury was to the Methodist 
Church of this country, Allen to the African Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, and Varick to the African 
Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. 

Bishop Richard H. Vanderhorst. 

Bishop Richard H. Vanderhorst, the second bish- 
op of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in 
America, was born at Georgetown, S. C, December 
15, 181 3, and died in July, 1872. While a young 
man he served an apprenticeship under one Samuel 
Dunmore and learned the carpenter's trade. He 
moved to Charleston, S. C, in 1835 and joined 
Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church. He was 
at once made a class leader. Later on he joined 
Bethel Church, where he continued to exercise those 
gifts that were to make him a leader of men in the 
future. He served as class leader until he was given 
a license to preach. It will be recalled that during 

147 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

the days of slavery it was contrary to the State laws 
and the Discipline of the Southern Methodist Church 
for quite a long while to grant to Negroes a license 
to preach. As soon as he was given a license to 
exhort and then to preach he took high rank as 
a preacher. He was a delegate to the first General 
Conference, which convened at Jackson, Tenn., when 
the Church was organized as a separate and inde- 
pendent body. This was in 1870, at which time he 
was elected to the office of bishop. He served the 
Church only eighteen months as a bishop, and then 
he laid aside the cross and took up the crown that is 
prepared for the faithful. Bishop Vanderhorst may 
never be regarded as an executive, parliamentarian, 
or organizer on the order of Bishop Miles; but as 
a gospel preacher and as an evangelist he had no 
superior. Eloquent and logical, his sermons would 
stir the hearts of men. Although short as to time, 
his services were very valuable to the Church. As 
long as the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church 
lives the name of Bishop Richard H. Vanderhorst 
will be remembered, loved, and revered. 

Bishop Joseph A. Beebe. 

The third man to be ordained to the office of 
bishop in the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church 
in America was Joseph A. Beebe, of North Carolina. 
He was born June 25, 1832, and died in Washing- 
ton, N. C, June 6, 1902. His ancestors were noted 
for their long lives and for the number of ministers 

148 



BISHOP J. A. BEEBE. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

who were connected with their family. However, 
the Bishop lived to reach not quite seventy years of 
age. He began a term of apprenticeship as a shoe- 
maker at seventeen years of age and followed the 
trade some years afterwards. He was happily con- 
verted in 1 85 1 and was married to Miss Cornelia 
Bookrum in 1858. He was ordained deacon in 1865 
and elder in 1866. Having joined the Colored 
Methodist Episcopal Church in America in 187 1, he 
was appointed presiding elder of the Washington 
(N. C.) District, which position he served for two 
consecutive years. In 1873, at a called session of 
the General Conference, he was elected bishop in 
Augusta, Ga., during the month of March. He was 
senior bishop from the time of the death of Bishop 
Miles, in 1892, to the time of his own death, in June, 
1902. I made an appeal to the Church at large for 
funds with which to erect over his grave a suitable 
monument. I collected enough for this purpose ; and 
the last resting place of Bishop Joseph A. Beebe is 
marked by a stone which in a feeble way expresses 
the love and appreciation of a grateful Church for 
the years of faithful services rendered by this great 
and noble man. Bishop Beebe was a man of some 
education. His language was choice, his diction 
pure, and his thoughts were always systematic and 
orderly. Neat in his appearance, his was an attrac- 
tive personality. He reared a family of useful chil- 
dren and was regarded as an affectionate father and 
a devoted husband. At his funeral many beautiful 

151 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

tributes were paid this great and good man by both 
white and black who had known and loved him for 
many years. 

Bishop Lucius H. Holsey, D.D. 

Bishop Lucius H. Holsey was born in Columbus, 
Ga., July 3, 1842. He lived on the farm three years, 
during which time he was a pupil under Bishop 
George F. Pierce, of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South. He was converted at an early age 
and joined the Methodist Church. He was soon 
thereafter called to the ministry, and in 1868 he was 
licensed to preach. He served only three appoint- 
ments as pastor. These appointments were the 
Hancock Circuit, Savannah Station, and Trinity, in 
Augusta, Ga. He was a delegate to our first Gen- 
eral Conference, which convened at Jackson, Tenn., 
and served as teller in the election of Bishops W. H. 
Miles and Richard H. Vanderhorst. In 1873 he was 
elected to the office of bishop at the General Confer- 
ence that convened in Trinity Church, in Augusta, 
Ga. He was a delegate to the first Ecumenical 
Methodist Conference, which met in London, Eng- 
land. In 1882 he was our fraternal delegate to the 
General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, South, where he ably represented the 
Church and race. In 1904 he was an honored dele- 
gate to the Sociological Congress that met in Wash- 
ington, D. C, and on many other important occa- 
sions he has served the race and his Church in a 

152 




BISHOP L. A. HOLSEY D.D. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

large and effectual way. Bishop Holsey was the 
prime factor in the founding and establishing of 
Paine College, an institution of learning located in 
Augusta, Ga. He traveled extensively for this work 
and raised a large sum of money for it. Bishop 
Holsey served as Secretary of the College of Bishops 
for a number of years and as such wrote most of 
the quadrennial addresses that have been read be- 
fore the various General Conferences of the Church. 
He revised the Book of Discipline of the Church 
and the Manual of Discipline and compiled the 
Standard Hymnal that is used extensively in the 
Church. He has written a book of "Sermons and 
Addresses" and is regarded as a writer of no mean 
ability. For several years he published a newspa- 
per known as the Gospel Trumpet, of which he was 
the editor in chief, and wrote extensively for other 
papers and monthly magazines. As a gospel preach- 
er he is eloquent, polished, and attractive. He is 
the senior bishop on the bench and has presided over 
the deliberations of the College of Bishops since the 
death of Bishop J. A. Beebe, in 1902. 

Bishop Isaac Lane, D.D. 

Rev. Isaac Lane was the fifth man to be elected 
to the office of bishop in the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church in America. He was born in 
Madison County, Tenn., near Jackson, March 3, 
1834, and has maintained his home in his native 
city. Inasmuch as a comprehensive account is given 

155 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

in another part of this book, suffice it to say just 
here that he was married to Miss Frances Ann 
Boyce in 1854, with whom he lived happily for 
forty years. To their union were born twelve chil- 
dren, seven girls and five boys. His first wife hav- 
ing died, he afterwards was married to Mrs. Mary 
E. Smith, of Marshall, Tex. He was converted 
September 11, 1854, and joined the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, South, the following October. He 
was granted license to exhort in 1856 and received 
license to preach shortly thereafter. He was or- 
dained deacon in 1866 by Bishop Robert Paine, 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and eld- 
er the very next year. He was made the presiding 
elder of the Jackson (Tenn.) District, which work 
he served for four years. He was afterwards ap- 
pointed as pastor of the Liberty Street Church, at 
Jackson, Tenn., where he remained until the con- 
vening of the General Conference in Augusta, Ga., 
in 1873, when he was elected and consecrated to the 
office of bishop. He was the fraternal messenger 
to the General Conference of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church, South, which convened in Dallas, Tex., 
where he rendered conspicuous sendee. He found- 
ed Lane College, at Jackson, Tenn. ; and because of 
the fact that it was the first school of the Church to 
be established and successfully operated by the 
Church, he is generally regarded as the pioneer in 
the school work of the Church. Mention has al- 
ready been made of his work in the mission and 

156 




1 



MRS. MARY ELIZABETH LONG SMITH LANE. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

educational fields. He successfully raised to splen- 
did manhood and womanhood several children, who 
have been an ornament to the Church and a blessing 
to general society. The following ones have passed 
to the great beyond, where "sickness, pain, and death 
are felt and feared no more": Martha A. Lane 
Lancaster, born October 8, 1854, died August 25, 
1885; Luna A. Lane, born March 29, 1869, died 
October 20, 1882; Isaac Lane, Jr., born August 9, 
1865, died April 24, 1889; Rebecca Lane Wilson, 
born January 4, 1858, died December 7, 1915; 
Charley W. Lane, D.D., born February 19, 1867, 
died December 28, 1904; William Henry Lane, 
M.D., born February 8, 1872, died December 2, 
191 5. The following children are still living: Mrs. 
Rachel Lane Berry, the wife of Mr. J. W. Berry, of 
Jackson, Tenn. ; Mrs. Jennie E. Lane Cleaves, the 
wife of Bishop N. C. Cleaves, D.D., of Memphis, 
Tenn. ; Mrs. Ida M. Lane Burrows, the wife of Mr. 
William Burrows, contractor and builder, Memphis, 
Tenn. ; Mr. Joshua W. Lane, letter carrier, Jackson, 
Tenn. ; Mr. J. F. Lane, A.M., Ph.D., President of 
Lane College, Jackson, Tenn. He often says: "My 
family is about equally divided between heaven and 
earth; and whether I go or stay, I shall be with 
them until the families of both heaven and earth 
shall join, never to be divided again." 

Bishop Robert S. Williams, D.D. 
Bishop Robert S. Williams was born in Caddo 
Parish, La., October 27, 1858. His education was 

159 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

obtained at the common public schools and Wiley 
and Howard Universities. He was married to Miss 
Willie Williams, of Washington, D. C, October 21, 
1 89 1. He was converted and joined the Church in 
1878. He joined the Louisiana Conference in 1881 
and was transferred at the same Conference and 
appointed to the pastorate of our Church at Long- 
view, Tex. In 1884 he was transferred to the Vir- 
ginia Annual Conference and appointed to the pas- 
torate of Israel Metropolitan Church, at Washing- 
ton, D. C, where he labored for four years. From 
this place he was transferred to the South Carolina 
Annual Conference and given the pastorate of Syd- 
ney Park Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, in 
Columbia. At these two important places Rev. 
Williams demonstrated such qualities of mind and 
soul, as well as ability to do constructive work for 
the Master, that he won the recognition and admira- 
tion of the Church at large. From Columbia he was 
sent to Augusta, Ga., as pastor of Trinity Church, 
which work he served for three years. It was from 
this pastorate that he was elected to the bishopric of 
the Church by the General Conference which met in 
Memphis, Tenn., in May, 1894. Rev. R. S. Wil- 
liams was one of the most successful pastors our 
Church has ever produced. He was ordained dea- 
con by Bishop Lane and elder by Bishop Miles. He 
was the fraternal messenger of our Church to the 
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church which 
met in Pittsburgh, Pa., and a delegate to the third 

160 




11 BISHOP R, S, WILLIAMS, D.D. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Ecumenical Conference of the Methodist Churches, 
which convened in London, England, in 1901. He 
is a man of splendid parts. As a preacher and lec- 
turer his services are in great demand. Eloquent 
and impressive, he never fails to make a deep im- 
pression. He has written a book of sermons and 
addresses that has received a wide circulation. 
Bishop Williams takes a keen interest in all matters 
pertaining to the uplift of the race and has a host 
of admirers and followers not only in the Church, 
but throughout the country, among all people. He 
is honored and respected by all who know him. 

Bishop Elias Cottrell, D.D. 

Bishop Elias Cottrell, D.D., was born in Marshall 
County, Miss., June 31, 1853. His education was 
obtained in the public schools of the county and in 
Central Tennessee College, at Nashville, Tenn. He 
was married to Miss Catherine Davis, of Nashville, 
Tenn., January 1, 1880. To their union was born 
one child, a daughter, who survives her mother. 
Bishop Cottrell's public career began as a school- 
teacher in his native county in 1873. He was con- 
verted in August, 1874, and was licensed to preach 
in November, 1875. In January, 1876, he was ad- 
mitted on trial into the North Mississippi Annual 
Conference. Having been ordained deacon in 1877 
and elected and ordained elder in 1878, he served 
some very important charges. Prominent among 
them, we mention Olive Branch, Miss. ; Capers 

163 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Chapel, Nashville, Tenn. ; Lamar, Miss. ; Byhalia, 
Miss. ; Liberty Street Station, Jackson, Tenn. ; Dy- 
ersburg, Tenn.; Brownsville (Tenn.) District; Col- 
lins Chapel, Memphis, Tenn. ; and Dyersburg Sta- 
tion. He was selected Book Agent in 1882 at the 
General Conference that met in Washington, D. C. ; 
and in 1890 he was elected to the office of Commis- 
sioner of Education for the Colored Methodist 
Episcopal Church in America. Lie was the fraternal 
messenger to the General Conference of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, South, in 1892 and was 
elected and consecrated to the office of bishop at the 
session of the General Conference that convened in 
Memphis, Tenn., in 1894. As a preacher Bishop 
Cottrell has but few equals. Argumentative and 
forceful, he delivers his message with great power. 
Aside from his mental powers, he was a very attrac- 
tive personality. His greatest work is seen in the 
founding and establishing of the Mississippi In- 
dustrial College, at Holly Springs. He traveled, 
preached, lectured, and raised large sums of 
money for this work. Under his magnetic leader- 
ship the patronizing Conferences have done a re- 
markable work at Holly Springs. The Bishop re- 
sides in Holly Springs, but is at present (1916) in 
charge of the Conferences of the Third Episcopal 
District. 

Bishop Charles Henry Phillips, D.D. 
Bishop Charles Henry Phillips, LL.D., was born 
in Milledgeville, Ga., January 17, 1858. He was 

164 




BISHOP ELIAS COTTRELL, D.D. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 



educated in the public schools, Atlanta University, 
and Central Tennessee College, graduating from the 
regular college course of the latter institution in 
1880 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He was 
married to Miss Lucy Ellis Tappan, of Nashville, 
Tenn., December 16, 1880. At the age of seventeen 
he was converted and joined the Church at his home. 
He was licensed to preach by the Rev. R. T. White 
in 1878. He served as Principal of Lane Institute 
(now Lane College) for two years and rendered 
splendid service during that time. He joined the 
West Tennessee Annual Conference in 1879 and 
was appointed pastor of Collins Chapel in 1885. 
Among the other large appointments he filled may 
be mentioned the following: Israel Metropolitan 
Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, Washington, 
D. C, for four years ; Center Street Colored Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church, Louisville, Ky., for two 
years; and presiding elder of the Mount Sterling 
District for some time. In 1894 he was elected 
editor of the Christian Index, the official organ of 
the Church, and served in that capacity until he was 
elected to the bishopric of the Church by the General 
Conference which met in Nashville, Tenn., in May, 
1902. Prior to his election to the bishopric of the 
Church, Bishop Phillips had been a member of sev- 
eral of the General Conferences, was fraternal mes- 
senger to the General Conference of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church and the Methodist Episcopal Sun- 
day School Convention, which Convention met in 

167 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

London, England, in July, 1889. He was appointed 
delegate to the Ecumenical Conference of Method- 
ists which met in Washington, D. C, in 1891. His 
address before that body elicited much favorable 
comment. In 1901 he was again sent as a delegate 
to the great Ecumenical Conference of Methodism 
that met at this time in London, England. Bishop 
Phillips has enjoyed splendid educational advan- 
tages. Besides being a college graduate, he is a 
graduate in medicine and theology. He holds the 
degrees of A.B. and M.D. because of the courses 
he took while in school. Several years afterwards 
Wiley University, at Marshall, Tex., and Philander 
Smith College, at Little Rock, Ark., conferred upon 
him the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity. In 
19 1 6 Wilber force University, the leading school of 
the African Methodist Episcopal Church, conferred 
upon the Bishop the degree of Doctor of Laws. He 
is a fluent speaker, scholarly and dignified in his 
manner. He is recognized as one of the most rep- 
resentative men of the Church and the race. The 
success of the educational work in Texas under his 
leadership and the splendid work consummated in 
establishing and organizing the Conference in the 
Golden West add another page of glory to his rec- 
ord as a bishop. He is a strong preacher, an author 
of recognized ability, an erudite scholar, and a fine 
executive. He presides over the Fourth Episcopal 
District. 

168 




BISHOP C. H. PHILLIPS, LL.D. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Bishop M. F. Jamison, D.D. 

Bishop M. F. Jamison, D.D., was born near 
Rome, Ga., November 27, 1848. When but a boy 
his parents were carried to Alabama, and of course 
he went with them. Here he grew into manhood. 
He had no chance at an education, as during those 
days it was unlawful for Negroes to be taught to 
read or write. He professed faith in Christ at 
Newbern, Ala., in October, 1867, and in the very 
next year he felt a divine call to the ministry. He 
was licensed to exhort in 1870 and was licensed to 
preach by one Rev. Mimms in 1871. Shortly there- 
after he moved to Texas and was admitted on trial 
into the East Texas Annual Conference in 1874. 
Returning from the Conference, he was married to 
Miss M. A. Flennoy January 14, 1874. At this 
time he made his home near Marshall, Tex., and 
was assigned to the pastorate of Marshall and Long- 
view. Among the other charges that he served so 
faithfully and well, we might mention the following, 
Sherman, Dallas, Fort Worth, and Leesburg ; while 
he served as presiding elder over almost all of the 
districts in his Conference. He became editor of 
the Christian Advocate, a paper published in the 
State of Texas. While editor of the Christian Ad- 
vocate he was presiding elder of the Tyler Dis- 
trict and moved the office of that paper to Tyler. 
Bishop Jamison was a delegate to the General Con- 
ference for a number of years and was recognized 
as a leader in his Conference. In 1890 he was elect- 

171 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

ed General Secretary of the Church Extension De- 
partment by the General Conference that convened 
in Little Rock, Ark. In 1893 the General Board 
elected him editor of the Christian Index, the 
official organ of the Church. In 1908 Phillips 
College conferred upon him the honorary degree of 
Doctor of Divinity, and in 1910 he was elected and 
consecrated to the office of bishop. During the past 
six years of his service he has been faithful in the 
discharge of the many difficult duties coming to him 
as a bishop. In Texas, where he spent the first four 
years of his life as a bishop, he accomplished great 
things for the educational work in that State. 



i &* 



Bishop R. A. Carter, D.D. 

Bishop Randall Albert Carter was born at Fort 
Valley, Ga., January 1, 1867. He is the son of 
Tobias and Grace (Chivers) Carter. He was car- 
ried to Columbia, S. C, the home of his maternal 
parents, when a child and attended the public schools 
of that city until he had completed the common 
school course. He was among the first students to 
matriculate at the newly founded Allen University, 
of Columbia, S. C, and attended that school from 
1880 to 1884, completing the normal course and go- 
ing through the sophomore class. He matriculated 
at Paine College, Augusta, Ga., in the fall of 1887; 
completed the college course in 1891, being the first 
person to complete the college course in that insti- 
tution; and was given the D.D. degree by his Alma 

172 




BISHOP M. F. JAMISON, DJD. 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 



Mater in 190 1. He was married to Miss Janie S. 
Hooks, of Macon, Ga., an alumnus of Paine Col- 
lege, April 22, 1 89 1, from which union one child, a 
daughter, was born. He joined the South Carolina 
Annual Conference in 1887, being received by Bish- 
op W. H. Miles at Green Pond, S. C. He has pas- 
tored some of the smallest charges, as well as some 
of the largest, in South Carolina and Georgia. He 
was elected Epworth League Secretary at the organ- 
ization of that department in the Colored Method- 
ist Episcopal Church in 1898; was a member of the 
Colored Methodist Episcopal delegation to the Ecu- 
menical Conference of Methodism held in London 
in 1 90 1 ; was fraternal delegate to the General Con- 
ference of the Methodist Episcopal Church held at 
Chicago, 111., in 1900; was for twenty years a mem- 
ber of the Committee on Episcopacy of the General 
Conference ; was chairman five consecutive times of 
the Georgia Conference delegation to the General 
Conference. He was elected bishop at St. Louis, 
Mo., in May, 19 14. Bishop Carter's services as a 
lecturer are in great demand. Clear in thought, 
precise in expression, he succeeds in impressing his 
audiences as but few speakers can do. He is a writ- 
er, pulpiteer, and scholar. Although just beginning 
his work as a bishop, he has made a favorable im- 
pression upon the Church at large. He should ren- 
der a large service to the Church and race because of 
the preparation he has had for his life work. 

175 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Bishop N. C. Cleaves, D.D. 

Nelson Caldwell Cleaves was born on a farm 
near Oakland, Fayette County, Tenn., October 7, 
1865. He is the son of Lilbon and Annie Cleaves. 
He attended the public school in the county until 
he was sixteen years old and then entered a private 
school under William Penn Liston, a highly edu- 
cated white man, who came into the county in 1883 
and gave his valuable service to the uplift of the 
Negro. In 1885 he entered Lane College, Jackson, 
Tenn., and graduated from the normal course in 
1887. In 1888 he entered Fisk University in the 
senior college preparatory year, but left on the ad- 
vice of physicians. Benedict College conferred the 
honorary degree of D.D. upon him in 19 12. He 
taught in the public schools of Fayette and Madison 
Counties for five years, was principal of the city 
school in Minden, La., and founder of Minden High 
School. He was principal of the English Depart- 
ment of Lane College three years. On August 2J, 
1889, he was married to Miss Jennie E. Lane, and 
to their union were born four children — Frances 
N., Shellie B., Lane C, and Florence E. — all of 
whom survive. He was converted and joined the 
Colored Methodist Episcopal Church September 12, 
1882. Following the impression of early years, he 
applied for admission on trial in the ministry at 
Dyersburg, Tenn., in 1893. He was admitted and 
assigned to the pastorate of the South Jackson Cir- 
cuit, where he served one year. He served with 

176 




13 



BISHOP R. A, CARTER, D.D, 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

acceptability the following charges: Lane Chapel, 
Humboldt, two years; Wesley Chapel, Clarksville, 
three years; Collins Chapel, Memphis, three years; 
Israel Metropolitan Church, Washington, D. C, 
four years ; Sydney Park Church, Columbia, S. C, 
eight years. His ministry was characterized by 
peace and harmony, the ingathering of souls, and 
financial harvests. He served the Church in several 
representative capacities. The bench of bishops 
appointed him fraternal messenger to the General 
Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal 
Church which met at Columbus, Ohio, in 1900. He 
was Secretary of the General Board from 1898 to 
1906, Assistant Secretary of the General Confer- 
ence at Augusta, Ga., in 19 10, and Secretary in 
Chief of the General Conference at St. Louis in 
19 1 4. While pastoring in Washington he served 
as President of the Interdenominational Ministers' 
Alliance. In Columbia, S. C, he was actively al- 
lied with the Ministers' Union, State Sunday School 
Union, Associated Charities, and other organiza- 
tions which work for the social, civic, and religious 
uplift of the people. He was elected bishop by the 
General Conference at St. Louis May 19, 19 14, and 
was assigned by the College of Bishops to the Sev- 
enth Episcopal District. He is President of the 
Board of Trustees of Miles Memorial College, Bir- 
mingham, Ala., and Mississippi Industrial College, 
Holly Springs, Miss. He is a member of the South- 
ern Sociological Congress and of the Federal Coun- 

179 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

cil of the Churches of Christ in America. Bishop 
Cleaves is a pulpiteer of no mean ability. Clear in 
diction, ponderous in thought, and fervent in speech, 
he never fails to impress his hearers with his mes- 
sage. As an executive he takes high rank. His 
Conferences are always orderly, and his work is 
systematic. His services are in great demand. 

1 80 




BISHOP N. C. CLEAVES, D.D. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 
Excerpts from a Sermon on "Faith." 

Text, Hebrews xi. i : "Now faith is the sub- 
stance of things hoped for, the evidence of things 
not seen." 

This entire chapter is on the subject of "Faith 
and Hope." In this Epistle the apostle had been 
writing on the priesthood of Christ, the excellency 
of his priesthood, the atonement, and the efficacy of 
the sacrifice made; and now he comes to consider 
the sublime subject of the nature and fruits of faith. 
He begins this subject with the sentence we have 
just quoted as our text. 

We are given to understand that faith is a sub- 
stance; and, of course, the substance is the princi- 
pal part of anything. If we are talking about ma- 
terial things, the substance is the strength, the valor 
of the thing. The substance of faith is hope. 
Without hope there can be no faith. Now, what is 
hope? Hope is compound in its meaning, made up 
of the idea of desire and the idea of expectation. It 
is not the same as a wish, for a wish may be at 
random; but hope is a desire and an expectation 
combined. The two must be together, or it is not a 
hope. It is also definite. 

Faith is the foundation of all religions. There 
must be the idea of a God, and there must be faith 
in his existence and personality; otherwise there 

183 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

can be no system of religion or creed involving the 
idea of a God. It is comprehended in the very at- 
tribute of his nature. It is God's will to reveal in 
his plan to man this faith and the hope in the im- 
mortality of his soul. 

This chapter contains a great many references to 
faith, both historical and otherwise. By faith the 
elders obtained a good report. Through faith we 
understand that the world was formed by the word 
of God, so that things which are seen were not made 
of things which do appear. By faith Abel offered 
unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by 
which he obtained witness that he was righteous, 
God testifying of his gifts, and by it he being dead 
yet speaketh. By faith Enoch was translated, that 
he should not see death, and was not found because 
God had translated him. In this chapter of He- 
brews we find that the subject of faith is mentioned 
twenty times, with reference to twenty different 
kinds of faith. Finally, the apostle said that time 
would fail to allow him to make mention of all the 
characters that the Bible made statement of. In 
fact, there is so much on the subject that it would 
take a great deal of time and much patience to at- 
tempt to mention all pertaining to the subject of 
faith. 

There are degrees as well as qualities of faith. 
Faith is a supplement to knowledge. What we can- 
not know by the power within us to reason, we may 
believe or have faith in the subject. This is a com- 

184 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

mon requirement made of us in the study of history, 
the natural and metaphysical sciences. When we 
talk of natural faith we mean worldly faith in things 
of a worldly nature, such as the business of a farm- 
er and the faith he must exercise in the carrying on 
of his work. The Bible says: ''He that ploweth 
should plow in hope." This kind of faith may be 
exercised in the regularity of the laws of nature. So 
all that we cannot know that is necessary for us to 
know requires faith on our part. 

There is a quality of faith called persuasion, and 
it is seen when we accept a notion because of the 
sentiment rather than the knowledge we have re- 
ceived concerning it. There is another quality of 
faith which I call grace. This is attained not di- 
rectly, but indirectly. This God freely gives to all. 
There is also the faith of grace. But we are con- 
sidering here soul-saving faith. This means faith 
in God; faith in the acceptance of a personal God; 
faith in all the attributes of God, both natural and 
moral. This quality of faith does not save men, nor 
is it the means of salvation. The faith that effects 
the union between God and man is faith in God's 
plan to save — that is, faith in Jesus Christ and the 
merits of Christ in the sacrifice which he made that 
his blood is the efficacy of atonement. This is God's 
plan. We are, then, to accept Christ as a divine 
substitute, for Christ bore all our sins in his own 
body on Calvary's cross. This is truly the medium 
by which we have peace with God. "Therefore 

185 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHQP ISAAC LANE 

being justified by faith, we have peace with God 
through our Lord Jesus Christ." (Rom. v. i.) 

We shall now consider briefly the doctrine of the 
Church of our choice on this subject. We have 
three evidences. First, the Holy Bible. This is 
God's will revealed to man. Secondly, the effect 
that religion has on the world. This is ofttimes 
called external evidence. Thirdly, our own experi- 
ence that we are brought from darkness into light. 
Each believer can say for himself that "I am a new 
child in Christ, killed to the love of sin and made 
alive in the love of Christ." This is an evidence of 
a personal faith in the saving grace of Christ, mak- 
ing the soul a new creature in Christ, establishing a 
communion between God and man. Then there is 
faith in his grace that he will bring me home to 
heaven when this life is over and I am called to 
stand at his bar to be rewarded for work done in 
this life. I can then know that I am with him, and 
then I will be known "even as I am known." 

This faith will condemn and drive the wicked 
away. Christ is the medium of happiness. This is 
the faith Enoch had, that he walked with God and 
was not, for God took him up to be at home in 
heaven — a faith that I will recognize my kindred 
and loved ones in that spiritual world out of the 
flesh, out of this world with Christ, free from sin and 
pain and death. Christ came into the world to save 
us from this great death and to give us life in him, 
for "he that hath the Son of God hath life eternal." 

186 



CHAPTER XXV. 

Extracts from an Address on "Holiness" De- 
livered BEFORE AN ANNUAL CONFERENCE. 

Since the organization of our Church I have held 
to the idea that a pure ministry and a holy member- 
ship are the only hope of our doing the work expect- 
ed of us as a great Church. Holy living follows 
peace with all mankind. "Follow peace with all 
men, and holiness, without which no man shall see 
the Lord." (Heb. xii. 14.) 

If we note the order of things, we find that the 
higher the order the greater is the responsibility. 
Accordingly, the preacher should be an example for 
the flock not only in doctrine, but in living with the 
people. His conversation and entire dealings should 
be such as become a preacher of the gospel, always 
having something helpful to give the people, some 
noble example for them to emulate. 

The Methodists have three special evidences, one 
of which is experimental. It is most commonly ex- 
pressed as follows: "I know that my Redeemer 
lives, for he lives in me." This evidence should 
stand out in a Methodist's life. With the Method- 
ist there is nothing to be found against the doctrine 
of holiness, while on the other hand there is every- 
thing in its favor. Our righteousness should be free 
from every known sin. If we love God with all our 
soul, mind, and body, and this love of God predomi- 

187 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

nates our entire being, it is not difficult to live a pure 
and upright life. "Love is the divinest of all the 
train," filling both mind and soul. 

If we understand Methodism, it means Christian- 
ity and earnestness. No one who seeks to live a 
holy life has any argument against holiness, but 
there may be a question as to whether any one can 
live a holy life in this world. The way to answer 
this is to ask whether or not any one has failed to 
live this life who has desired it, sought it, expected 
it, and at the same time has lived up to the utter- 
most of his moral power to attain unto it. Now, 
when any one does not believe he can be holy, when 
he begins to doubt its possibility, there is no way by 
which he can attain unto it. But let him desire it, 
expect it, crave it, and it will not be difficult for 
him to live up to it. Desiring it, looking for it, and 
using every power within us to reach it is all that is 
required of us. This is better than making loud 
professions or demonstrations in words. 

God makes it our duty and privilege to be holy; 
and if we are not, we alone are to blame. Our duty 
to God, to ourselves, to the Church, and to our 
families is involved and laid upon us. Our privilege 
to be holy is a responsibility we must meet if we 
please God. When we stop and observe ourselves 
and our relation to each other and to our God, we 
can then more clearly realize our moral duty and 
opportunity. Our daily prayer should be: "Conse- 
crate me now to thy service, Lord." 

188 



CHAPTER XXVI. 
A Dissertation on "Why Baptize Children?" 

The baptism of children is a. subject that should 
be considered carefully by us all. We are often 
asked: "Why baptize children? What good is there 
in it? What good will it do the child? If there is 
no good to be accomplished thereby, it should be 
discontinued." N 

In reply to these interesting questions we ask: 
W^hat good does it do any one to be baptized? 
The only answer that comes is: "To fulfill the com- 
mandment of the Lord." Just before our Lord as- 
cended unto heaven he said to his disciples: "Go ye 
therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in 
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the 
Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things 
whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am 
with you alway, even unto the end of the world. 
Amen." 

There are two classes of subjects for baptism — 
viz., adults and infants. Faith is required of the 
adult, but not of the infant. If faith were required 
of the infant, then the child would be lost, as it is 
not susceptible of exercising faith. We believe that 
a child should be baptized, because Christ said: 
"Suffer the little children to come unto me, and for- 
bid them not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven." 
If such as they are in heaven, then they should have 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

a place in the Church, his sanctuary on earth. The 
Church on earth represents the kingdom of heaven, 
and as such the children should find a place in it. 

The question may be asked: "What authority have 
you for infant baptism?" To this question we may 
reply by simply calling the attention of the inter- 
rogator to the obligations and responsibility as- 
sumed by a parent to train "up a child in the fear 
and admonition of the Lord," to teach the child the 
meaning of baptism, that it means his dedication to 
the Lord, and that it means, after all, about as much 
to him as it does to an adult and, in fact, does the 
infant just about as much good as it does the adult. 
The parent should take the time and teach the child 
that he has been dedicated to the Lord and to the 
cause of righteousness. If that child has the confi- 
dence and utmost respect for his parents, it will be 
satisfied with its relation to the Church. 

"Infant sprinkled once was I, 
And since that is done 
I have laid it all by" 

may be urged against the baptism of children, but 
the same argument can be made against the baptism 
of the adult. The obligations of the parents with 
respect to the attitude of their children toward the 
Church has always been great. "Come thou, and 
all thy house, into the ark," saith the Lord to Noah. 
"What is the purpose of baptism?" is a question 
that is often asked. Baptism is the seal of a cove- 

190 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

nant between God and man, and as such it is God's 
plan and not the plan of man. As to the mode and 
manner in which it is to be done, there are many 
opinions prevailing among men. We hold that 
there is no virtue in how it is to be done, but it is 
necessary for us to obey the order. "To him that is 
able to believe and be baptized,' ' saith the Lord. 
How it is to be done is just where so many opinions 
have arisen. Some urge that the word "baptize" 
means to dip, to plunge, or to bury, while others hold 
to other views about the matter. If I were to urge 
any question at all on this subject, it would be: Is 
there any virtue in the mode, the manner in which 
baptism is done? John the Baptist said that Christ 
would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 
Now, did Christ do what John the Baptist said he 
would do? If so, how did Christ baptize you ? Was 
it in a river or a pool, a pond or a creek? Who 
took you down in it, took hold of you, turned your 
back, dipped you down in it, and then pulled you up 
out of it? 

You are to judge for yourself how you were con- 
verted, if that means baptism. Inasmuch as water 
baptism does not cleanse our hearts of sin, it does 
not matter very materially as to how the baptism 
takes place or how it is done. 

It is of the highest importance, however, that the 
parent feel the weight of the responsibility to God, 
the Church, and the child to teach why it is baptized 
and give the child the idea that it is dedicated to the 

191 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BISHOP ISAAC LANE 

Lord. This obligation was recognized and entered 
into when the child was baptized. After the parent 
has received this obligation, the minister offers a 
prayer after this manner: "O merciful God, grant 
that the old Adam in this child may be so buried 
that the new man may be raised up in him. Amen. 
Grant that all carnal affections may die in him and 
that all things belonging to the Spirit may live and 
grow in him. Amen. Grant that he may have 
power and strength to have victory and to triumph 
against the devil, the world, and the flesh. Amen. 
Grant that whosoever is dedicated to thee by our 
office and ministry may also be endued with heav- 
enly virtues and everlastingly rewarded through 
mercy, O blessed Lord God, who dost live and 
govern all things, world without end. Amen. 
Almighty, ever-living God, whose most dearly 
beloved Son Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of 
our sins, did shed out of his most precious side both 
water and blood and gave commandment to his dis- 
ciples that they should go teach all nations and 
baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the 
Son, and of the Holy Ghost: regard, we beseech 
thee, the supplications of thy congregation, and 
grant that this child, now to be baptized, may receive 
the fullness of thy grace and ever remain in the 
number of thy faithful and elect children, through 
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen." 

192 



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